Fifty Shades of Subterfuge
by amgomer
Summary: Sometimes people aren't who they appear to be. When realization strikes Christian, Welch, and Taylor that one of their own wasn't what he appeared to be, but a government operative life gets interesting...
1. Chapter 1

_**Readers:**__** I firmly believe there are two types of people, okay maybe more, who enjoyed the Fifty Shades trilogy. For me it was about the psychology behind the characters, for others it was for the inherent naughtiness (not a bad thing by any means). So if you are looking for kink, sorry, I don't write that type of story. For the sake of anyone reading my story it's from a few points of view which you should be able to determine who's point of view it is based on the first paragraph in the section where the point of view changes. The goal is to bring the multiple points of view together as the story progresses. Also, I will do my best to stick to the Fifty Shades character characteristics (sounds odd, right?).**_

_**With that said, it's been almost a decade since I've written a fan fiction – last ones were on the Harry Potter Fan Fiction site under the pen name Gomer. So just have patience with me.**_

**Fifty Shades of Subterfuge**

**Chapter 1**

_**Fall 2014**_

_There are two type of benefactors – those who write the big checks and those whose mother's force them to actually show up at significant events thrown by the recipient of said checks. My name is Christian Grey and I'm the happily married, ridiculously rich bastard who can't say no to his saint of a mother._ "Fuck!" I can't help but mutter under my breath when my beautiful baby daughter, Phoebe starts sucking on my bow tie. "Ana!"

As I wait for my Ana to come relieve me of Phoebe so I can finish getting ready to meet the new Director of Pediatric Oncology at a reception and Pediatric Oncology unit fundraiser held at the family home in Bellevue. He had listened to his mother talk almost non-stop at what a coup it was to hire Dr. Aguero from John's Hopkin's in Baltimore. He stared at his baby daughter as she continued drooling over his tie and shirt and shut his eyes tightly, cradling her against his chest hoping they would never need Dr. Aguero's services. He couldn't help but sigh.

He felt her soft hand caress his cheek before he heard her. "Christian, what's wrong?" Ana asked softly.

Four years and two kids later, his Ana was still beautiful even as she stood before him with her hair done and make-up half-finished wearing his bathrobe. He couldn't help but get lost in those big blue eyes. His thoughts were interrupted by her giggle.

"What's so funny?"

"You'd think after two kids, you would know better than to get fully dressed until the last minute. So Mr. Control-freak, when will you realize you can't control the actions of an infant?" she asked mockingly.

Running his fingers though his hair in frustration, he couldn't help but respond truthfully with a slight flush to his cheeks. "I can't explain it, but all Phoebe has to do is put her little hand up, coo and smile at me and control is hers. She's beyond even my control."

Ana giggled yet again, "I dread the teenage years. You'll either go bald from pulling on your hair or we'll have to lock her away at Escala until she's thirty."

"Try fifty," he sighs. "Any chance you can take our little one and give me a few minutes to change my shirt and tie?"

"Gail's has her bottle ready," Ana responds taking Phoebe in her arms. "She's been waiting for about twenty minutes for you to give her up."

Every time Ana left a room, he couldn't resist watching her sashay just for him as she left. Entering the walk in closet, he pulled out a clean shirt and tie to make a quick switch before heading to the living room to read a book to Teddy thereby allowing Ana to finish getting ready without interruption.

Twenty minutes later they were out the door and into the back of the Audi. As usual, Taylor drove them and led the security team for the evening.

"How did the security arrangements go Taylor?" Christian couldn't help but ask. He needed to control something this evening and this was it.

"Ryan, Reynolds and McNabb completed the sweep of Bellevue and all is clear. We've run background checks on the attendees and nothing flagged, though some were interesting," he replied cautiously.

Christian watched at Taylor gave him a quick glance using the rearview mirror. He gave Taylor an almost imperceptible nod allowing him to continue.

"Dr. Aguero's background check was impressive but vague," he replied. "Her escort for the evening should sound familiar though – it's Luke."

"Sawyer?" Christian questioned. They hadn't heard from Sawyer since he resigned almost a year ago and no amount of money he offered the man would get him to stay on board. He knew Ana took Luke's leaving hard – she trusted Luke Sawyer almost as much as she trusted Ray. After the incident with Hyde, she promised Sawyer no more secrets and she kept that promise.

"What has Sawyer been up to since he left? He never told us where he was going," Ana asked. Both men could hear the hurt in her voice, knowing that Sawyer's resignation still upset her, even a year later. He was the big brother she never had.

"He and your friend Jose quietly opened an engineering firm in the suburbs," Taylor replied with a smirk, knowing how his choice of wording could have implied more than a business arrangement. "Apparently with Luke's contacts and background, he received a lucrative government development contract and approached Jose about it. They staffed it with some of the best and brightest engineering students they could find in the graduating classes around the country last year."

"Jose never told me," Ana sighed.

"From what I've heard from an old buddy in the NSA, its classified so on this type of a thing there generally are no leaks," Taylor replied. "Knowing Luke, there won't be any leaks. I was out there once and it's a fortress in terms of security."

"I'll have to pick his brain tonight," Christian mused as they arrived at Bellevue.

Taylor smirked at Ana through the rearview mirror and watched her fail to stifle a giggle. _'They both know me too well,'_ Christian thought, _'I don't like not knowing something or being told I'm not allowed to know something.'_

They were greeted at the front door by an elegantly dressed butler and escorted through the house to the back yard. His mom and Mia had pulled out all the stops on this gathering. While they've held galas in the backyard before, this time was different – gone was the feeling of stuffy-formal, replaced by an organic, subtle Woodstock-like feel. The normal stage felt like a concert stage at a private venue with five white view screens. The stage itself was pure white, surrounded by colorful flower arrangements and hundreds of glass enclosed candles.

The dance floor was also white, while the dining area was in a similar theme of white, with flower arrangements providing the bursts of color, along with climbing roses overhead wrapped around the massive pergola.

Christian couldn't help but glance down at Ana's white dress with a subtle print of colorful climbing roses on both sides of the opening revealing hints of her right leg. "It appears you are dressed appropriately for the occasion."

She smiled shyly at him before informing him that Grace actually picked her dress and didn't allow her to even try it on until today. "And I thought you were the only control freak in the family," she laughed at him.

He couldn't help but chuckle in response. "Time to put on the social mask and pretend we are thrilled to be here and do the meet and greet."

They spent the next half hour, sipping white wine and greeting guests. Many they knew either from the hospital or through business. He had to hand it to his mother, some of Seattle's richest residents were here. He now wished he'd actually read the biography his mother had sent him on Dr. Aguero.

"Christian! Ana!" they heard Mia call out from the bar area.

They braced themselves for the inevitable energy explosion that was Mia Grey. Even in her mid-twenties, she still outwardly exuded a child-like exuberance.

Christian felt the air leave his lungs as Mia jumped to hug him, even in her six inch heels, almost knocking them both off their feet. "Nice to see you too Mia," he replied as she hugged Ana tightly.

He was surprised to see Mia's gown was pale pink with appropriately placed peek-a-boo cut outs and her hair adorned with colorful flowers. They watched as Mia pulled her friend Lily and a petite, younger-looking Hispanic female to her side.

"You remember Lily," Mia informed them with a smile.

'_Clearly lemon-faced Lily didn't receive the dress code notification,'_ Christian thought as he glanced briefly at his wife. The dark green gown didn't suit her pale complexion and newly lightened blonde hair.

"Lily," he greeted her.

"And this is my friend Abby," Mia continued. "It's her first time at one of mom's gatherings."

Abby was downright tiny next to Mia, but then again, most women were. Mia was naturally tall and compounded it by wearing ridiculous heels all the time, but Abby made even five-foot-four Ana appear tall. It didn't help that the girl, who appeared to be in her mid-to-late teens, was wearing elegant sandals with her outfit. Clearly Abby did get the dress code memo as she wore a white leather and lace dress with varied color blocks under the lace, though the fact that it was a tummy bearing two piece outfit and the skirt went to the floor left Christian thinking of Phoebe and the future teenage years and he vowed his daughter would never go out exposing her abdomen like that.

"Breathe," Ana whispered in his ear.

Finally, he reached out his hand and shook Abby's after Ana had. "Nice to meet you Abby."

"Mr. and Mrs. Grey, it's a pleasure to meet you. Mia talks about you all the time."

"Where did you get your hair done?" Ana asked, admiring her long thick brown French braid with strategically placed small white climbing roses woven into it.

Abby blushed profusely. "Mia did it for me after this morning's humidity left me looking like a nineteen eighties troll doll."

Mia snickered when Christian asked what a troll doll was. In seconds her cell phone was in hand as she showed her big brother what exactly a troll doll looked like. He couldn't help but smirk.

"So I went from troll to looking like I belong on the cover of a Massengill box, because I'm spring fresh. Now all I need is a meadow to frolic in," Abby replied blushing.

Mia and Ana burst out laughing, while Christian looked at them in utter confusion. "What?" he asked causing the three women's faces to flush. "Never mind, I don't think I want to know."

"We're going to the dance floor by the water," Mia announced, grabbing both Lily's and Abby's hands. "That's where all the cute guys and the good music are."

That said, Mia and company disappeared as Grace and Carrick approached the couple. After brief hugs and greetings, followed by Ana and Grace comparing outfits, Christian asked, "Where is this prestigious Dr. Aguero everyone is here to bury in money? I have to admit, I'm intrigued as the Seattle billionaires club is here other than Gates."

"Gates is in Africa with his family," Carrick informed him, "but he sent quite the donation. Apparently Dr. Aguero has accompanied his foundation on numerous trips in the past few years."

"Ana!" Kate exclaimed as she approached her friend. "It's about time you got here. We've been on the dance floor for an hour by the water." She quickly turned to Christian, kissed his cheek and added, "Hi Christian. I'm here to steal you wife while she's still young. You're over thirty so you're not allowed down there."

He rolled his eyes at his sister-in-law. "And Elliott is there because?"

"Maturity level of an adolescent," Kate replied with a giggle. "Besides being married to me and my temper can't be easy, so he needs to cut loose."

"And people say I'm mercurial," he replied. It took a few years but Kate had grown on him. It helped that she was loyal to Ana and she'd proven that over and over again.

"It's the one thing you can't corner the market on," she replied before dragging Ana to the water-side.

After chatting with his parents for a few minutes, Christian pulled his cell phone from his pocket and walked to the white bench near the boathouse. He was now close enough to watch his wife dance up a storm with her friends, but far enough away that she wouldn't attempt to drag him to the dance floor. He may be just over thirty, but in many ways, he knew he was an old soul; plus dancing with Mia and her adolescent-like friends wasn't his idea of fun. Rather than listen to Pitbull and other popular club music, he preferred more traditional music. "Shit!" he muttered to himself, "I'm an old fart at 32."

"That you are," Elliott replied with a smirk as he joined him on the bench. "Checking emails already?"

"I'm waiting to hear on that building near the hospital," he replied with a glance toward Elliott. "We should have hear about it yesterday. You know me, waiting isn't my favorite pastime."

Elliott shifted uncomfortably next to his brother before downing his tumbler of scotch in one foul swoop. He couldn't help but feel is carefree Elliott wasn't looking for an escape route.

"Something wrong?" Christian asked staring at his older brother intently.

"I need a refill," he replied before getting up and heading toward the bar.

Christian dialed his second at GEH, Ros Bailey. "Sorry to interrupt your Saturday evening Ros, but any word? Did Parkway go to GEH or KMA?"

He heard her sigh nervously before she replied. "If the rumors are true, it went to an interested third party, not a corporation, for a cash offer at twenty percent less than the highest bid. I'm trying to find out officially, but from all of my sources, it's apparently true. The owner sold it to someone else while the negotiations were ongoing with both GEH and KMA."

"Fuck!" he muttered. "How can that happen? I know we outbid KMA by at least 5%. That property was strategic for the GEH for some of our smaller and more remote businesses so they can expand into Seattle. Find out who got it and buy them out. It can't be that hard because how many people have fifteen million dollars in cash laying around."

"Will do my best boss. I will let you know more on Monday. Sorry it couldn't be better news," she replied before they ended their call.

After a quick email to Welch informing him that Ros would be forwarding him an individual's name on Monday with regard to who won the Parkway bid. He wanted a full background check on them as soon as possible. He knew he didn't like to lose but to have the highest bid on the table and have them take what appears to be the lowest one both frustrated and confused him. He needed to understand why. He understood when he was trying to take over a company personal feelings came into play, but this was a simple purchase of a building that needed to be torn down. It was a simple land purchase.

He was interrupted from his thoughts by a member of the serving staff announcing dinner was being served in ten minutes. He collected Ana from the dance floor and headed up toward their table, followed by Kate, Mia, and Abby. He was surprised to see Abby and a young Hispanic man in his early twenties were seated at their table, along with his parents, Elliott and Kate, Mia, Ethan, and one empty chair.

Even though Mia and Ethan had been dating for over two years, he found it difficult to handle their displays of affection, especially since while Mia was committed to Ethan, she still like to admire as she called it _a fine piece of beefcake every so often_. He couldn't help but glare at Ethan Kavanagh when he arrived and kissed Mia firmly and passionately on the lips. Yes, they had been living together for over a year, but she would always be his little sister.

He felt Ana's hand on his arm as she gave him a hint of a grin. She could always read him like her favorite Jane Austen novels. His glare softened toward Kavanagh, but didn't fully go away. He approved of Ethan; after all, he was nothing like his sister Kate. Ethan was calm in any situation, never flew off the handle, and was the voice of reason – all traits his sister needed in a partner. Yet this was his baby sister Mia – she would always be the giggling infant his parent brought home all those years ago who broke his silent world.

"Abby, is your brother hiding somewhere?" Grace asked with a smile.

The young girl glanced around. "I just assumed he was here catching up with friends." She turned to the handsome, young, Hispanic male next to her and asked, "Javi, have you seen or heard from Luke."

"He was caught up in an impromptu_ governmental big brother_ visit this afternoon," Javi replied with a smirk, "if you know what I mean. Nothing like a government-issued business colonic before a fundraiser."

"Luke, as in Luke Sawyer?" Ana asked Abby curiously.

Abby smiled brightly, the adoration of her older brother clearly etched on her face. "The one and only. Since he started his company he's always late for family gatherings. Do you know my brother?"

Ana and Christian quickly looked at each other before Ana replied, "Luke was my personal security for over two years. I wasn't aware he had a sister."

"Technically, half-sister – same mother, different father," she replied with a smile. "I wasn't aware he worked for your family. Luke Sawyer – man of mystery. Sawyer, Luke Sawyer" She couldn't help but giggle and the James Bond-like mocking of her only sibling.

"Okay Miss Aguero, keep that up and I'll ground you yet again," a voice came from behind her. They all watched as she jumped from her chair, turned around and hugged her big brother. "Luke!"

This wasn't the Luke Sawyer the Grey's knew. Gone was the buzz cut and somber expression of a CPO. His typical blonde buzz cut was gone, replaced by a slightly longer, blonde wavy hair. He was no longer clean shaven but with a blonde goatee and mischievous smile for his kid sister.

"That's Dr. Aguero to you Mr. Sawyer," she replied with a half-pout.

"You're Dr. Aguero," Christian asked in shock, "but you're a teenager."

"Christian!" his mother scolded him softly.

Abby laughed. "I get that all the time but it never grows old. Probably not unlike the look you get from women and gay men when you walk down the street; though I imagine that gets old quick. I'm not a teenager, I just look younger than I am."

"Abby!" Luke scolds. "That's…

She interrupts him with a smirk. "Let's be real Luke, Mr. Grey is hot whether you measure it in Kelvin, Fahrenheit or Celsius. He knows it, the room knows it, and it was just a comparison. I'm not hitting on him – blondes and gingers aren't my type. Neither are old dudes, as mom used to say."

"Filter Abby, turn it on," Luke implored her trying not to laugh. She merely shrugged at him.

"Old?" Ana laughed as she looked at Luke. Christian knew better than to laugh at her when she took a sip of wine while trying to stifle a laugh. He didn't want to leave Sawyer and the others across from her covered in wine.

"So, how old are you then?" Kate asked as her reporter instincts kicked in. "I mean you look around sixteen and let's be real – high school, four years of college, medical school, pediatric residency, then a two year fellowship in pediatric oncology, followed by the two years of practice and management of a residency program under your belt, you should be at least in your early thirties. Your bio didn't state your age."

Abby laughed. "I like the element of surprise. There is nothing better than seeing smug CEO's shocked faces when they see me present before a gathering." She turned to Christian and said, "No offense. I didn't mean you, but once I get to know you better we'll see if you fit into that category."

"He does," Kate replied without thinking.

Abby laughed and glanced at Ana, who was beet red trying to contain a snicker. She loved her husband but it was clear everyone knew Christian was smug when it came to his business. It would be difficult to achieve what he achieved without being smug, cunning and brilliant.

The conversation flowed over dinner. Grace took the stage while desert was being served and introduced Dr. Abby Aguero. "As you know, tonight's gathering is two-fold – to welcome Dr. Abby Aguero to our hospital family as the Director of Pediatric Oncology, but to roll-out our plans for the pediatric oncology unit and residency program beginning in July of next year." Grace began.

"Dr. Aguero was the youngest graduate ever of Georgetown University, with a double Bachelor's degree in pre-med and biochemistry at the age of thirteen, followed by John's Hopkins School of Medicine, which she graduated at seventeen. She then completed her Pediatric residency and Pediatric Oncology fellowship also at John's Hopkins in Baltimore. She remained on staff as an attending physician and as the Assistant Director of the Pediatric Oncology Department and the Education Director. Dr. Aguero is also active in the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and travels to Africa multiple times per year, along with traveling four times per year with Doctors Without Borders. It is with great pleasure to introduce everyone to Dr. Abby, as she's known to her young patients."

"Okay kiddo, grown up face now," Luke taunts her as she gets to her feet and heads to the stage to warm applause to the crowd.

"Thank you Grace," Abby begins. "Good evening everyone – especially you millionaires and billionaires in the crowd. Get ready to open your wallets because once you hear our plans for the Pediatric Oncology Program and what we hope to accomplish, I'm sure you will want to join our efforts." She takes a remote control from Grace and activates all of the video screens. On the largest center screen appears the mock-up of the hospital addition.

"I've known since I was eleven that I wanted to be a doctor, but more importantly a Pediatric Oncologist. I know some of you are thinking how could a prepubescent brat like me know that? Simple," she stated clicking the remote control for the first screen. "I've been in my patients shoes. I was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia just before my tenth birthday. As you can see, I was a happy child up until that point," she informs them as she points to a picture of herself with long wavy dark-brown hair with her parents – blonde attractive mother, Hispanic father. She clicks to the second screen, showing a photograph of a mangled car. "This picture was taken on the way back from my first cancer treatment. I was fortunate, lucky even – I survived, but the drunk driver that hit us, along with my parents didn't."

She paused and allowed that to sink into the crowd. "Normally the diagnosis of cancer affects not just the patient but the patient's immediate family and friends. Again, I was lucky because while my family was small – no close aunts, uncles, or cousins, I had a half-brother who was fifteen years my senior and working in the Middle East. How do you tell a twenty-five year old that is living his dream that he needs to return to the States and raise not just a child, but a child that potentially will die. Cancer, like death, takes good people from the top of their world and brings life crashing down around them. Again, I consider myself lucky. I can see by the faces out there that some of you think I'm insane saying that but I really was."

They watch as she turns to her brother and invites him on stage. "I know I'm putting you on the spot but you can speak for the family side, while I can speak for the patient side from experience." She hands a nervous Luke Sawyer a microphone.

"First – I hate public speaking, so if I freeze, it's her fault," he began. "I had just arrived in Germany on leave with a few buddies of mine when I received word about the accident. I had heard about the cancer diagnosis just weeks before and was finishing up my current assignment before heading home to check on the little pixie of the family. The diagnosis alone was crushing, but burying family and trying to cope with the shear learning curve about her diagnosis was overwhelming. Between appointments – doctors, labs, radiation, counseling, physical therapy from the accident, grieving, learning to be a parent when you still felt somewhat like a kid yourself, and helping a child process everything was all-consuming. You don't sleep, don't eat, you obsess over every little detail to make sure you aren't missing anything, when the one thing you miss throughout is your own life, but in reality, you don't miss it until later because you don't have time to think about it given the situation."

He pauses for a minute and takes a deep breath. "Imagine two or three years of this as a constant. It's like spending all that time in the middle of an anxiety attack. Hell, just revisiting it now raises my blood pressure thirty points. The shear details permeate every cell of your being, but when you crash each night in bed because your body is exhausted, your mind won't turn off – it's when it's quiet that you allow your fears for the patient to consume you – will they survive, how physically or emotionally damaged will they be after this is over if they do, and will the cancer come back." He closes his eyes, tilts his head back and takes another deep breath before continuing. "_Will it come back_ – four little words that to this day haunt me. Imagine every time Abby looks pale or sneezes or just looks tired the feeling of dread returns full force.

"The biggest question that makes you reexamine everything is why? I mean, let's be real, she was nine – _why?_" No one missed the anger in his voice. "It's a never-ending cycle of putting your life and her life under a microscope trying to figure out why, and although you know you didn't do anything wrong, you still search."

Abby moves beside him and puts her arm around his waist before he continues. "When a family member gets sick, nothing else should matter – not a career no matter how cherished it is. We were lucky," he states putting his hand over her shoulder. "We were in a financial situation where it didn't matter if I worked or not during her treatments. Others aren't so lucky. They rely on medical benefits and a salary from working in order to live day-to-day. Imagine all that stress and throw in a job on top of it. That is why this cancer center is so important. We can make a difference in the Greater Seattle area and beyond. This challenge became my sister's passion and mine; as such, I would like to be the first to donate to the center."

Everyone watches as he reaches into the inner pocket of his jacket and hands Abby an envelope before kissing her on the cheek. Before she can open it, he returns to his seat.

"Time for the tally board to go up," Grace states pulling a string and revealing an electronic dollar counting board over the view screens. "What should we be put up there to begin Abby?"

They watch as Abby opens the envelope and pulls out a cashier's check and gazes at it slack-jawed. She glances at her brother, who merely smiles at her. "Five million dollars," Abby shouts before jumping off the stage and running to hug her brother. "You finally broke into that trust fund after fifteen years. Thank you so much!"

Abby returns to the stage and continues. "I know the medical professionals attending tonight understand the big picture but for those who are not medical professionals and also lucky enough to never have experienced childhood cancer first hand, I'd like to share the rest of my story. Again, I was lucky because my brother was a control freak."

Christian glances toward Sawyer, who merely smiles at him and whispers, "What? Did you think you were the only one?"

Ana giggles at them.

"I still remember one of the first questions Luke asked after the standard ones of _'how are you feeling?'_ and _'what can I do?'_" I want you to imagine this – he's twenty-six, nervous as hell, and blushing when he asked me: _'have you ridden the cotton pony yet?'_ and I just shrugged and did my best to appear clueless just to make him more uncomfortable. It was mean, I know. My mom believed in talking about everything really early, so I knew what he was talking about, but just imagine, buzz cut Luke" Abby paused long enough to show a picture of Luke, fresh back from Germany sitting with her in her hospital room. "asking a now ten-year old if she was menstruating. What girl wouldn't milk that for all it's worth regardless of what was going on around her. I mean really."

The crowd laughed and Luke couldn't help but blush. "I didn't ask why he'd ask such a question, but I knew he had to have a reason. For as long as I could remember, Luke had a reason for everything he did. Turns out he learned that harsh chemo drugs harm eggs and could lead to infertility or other issues, so since I was already _galloping along _by ten, he consulted with my doctors regarding egg retrieval. I mean who thinks of that for a ten-year old. Luke Sawyer – control freak extraordinaire. And he was right, because I had so much chemo it probably would have been safer to store my eggs in Chernobyl as opposed to my own body. I was also lucky enough to receive a stem cell transplant from my brother just over a year later. Here's a list of what my brother went through, with pictures…"

The slideshow began –

**Slide 1 – Post op egg retrieval and storage**

"This is me waking up in the recovery room with Luke by my side post-procedure. When I was conscious enough and uncomfortable, he told me this was important to do. My reply? I punched him in the nose. What can I say, anesthesia plus hormones made little Abby cranky."

**Slide 2 – The Scalping or Haircut time**

"Anyone familiar with those of us of the female persuasion know our hair is sacred. My mean, old brother," she smiled at him, "made me cut my long wavy hair for a significantly shorter do. That's the before and after – and yes, I'm sneering at him. I was not happy."

**Slide 3 – Chemo, radiation and hair loss**

"Needless to say, the fact that the fifteen inches of hair that he insisted on cutting off my thick, petulant head became my wig when my hair began falling out in clumps. Bald didn't look good on me. It took me a few months, but I apologized and actually thanked him. Have I mentioned that I wasn't the most cooperative patient?" She laughed and everyone joined her in a chuckle.

**Slide 4 – The ICU – My second home**

"Eight months into my treatment, or as I called it, prison camp with my controlling big brother, I caught a simple cold, which due to my compromised immune system put me in the ICU for two months, one of which was on a respirator. The memories are vague but the one thing I remember clearly about that dark time is my brother always at my side, searching the web and reading medical journals to find ways to help me. Once I improved, the treatments continued." She smiles at her brother and asks him, "How many times did I puke on you Luke?"

"I lost count after a hundred, but you still owe me about ten pairs of Nikes," he replied with a smirk.

**Slide 5: Education, Entertainment, and A New Type of Doctor**

"Throughout the multiple year treatment period, he filled my days with school work, video games – I'm a classic type of girl – give me Sonic, Pong, and Duck Hunt and I'm happy. He also gave me novels and we watched movies. He left my side long enough to go home, shower, and change. We did eight hours of school work per day and by the time it was stem cell transplant time I was a high school graduate. He gave me the distraction I needed, along with a psychiatrist to get us both through the rough times." She clicked through picture after picture of them playing games, studying, watching movies and of Luke holding her as she cried herself to sleep.

**Slide 6: Stem Cell Transplant Day**

"Back then marrow donation wasn't as easy as it is now on the donors in most cases. The funny thing was Luke didn't mind, but he hated wearing the hospital gown." She shows them a picture of Luke in a hospital gown asleep in the recovery room followed by her back in her isolation room post-transplant. "This was the first day, after almost two years of hell, where I felt like I just might survive this."

"Most patients have parents and siblings, along with other relatives to shoulder the responsibility of caring for someone with childhood cancer. I had Luke and it tore through the fabric of his life – his career, his aspirations, and even his marriage. Yes Luke, I know you got married four months before my diagnosis and you didn't tell mom. You got on an airplane in Germany as basically a newlywed and got off the plane knowing you were walking away from the life you so carefully constructed and I know why too. Not everyone can cope with instant parenthood, much less instant parenthood with a critically ill child." Abby raises her glass of wine. "And for your caring and support Luke, I will forever be in your debt."

Everyone drank to Luke, who stared at his sister in shock.

"As I said," Abby continued with a gentle smile. "I'm lucky. I survived and was raised by the most incredible sibling in the world. Others aren't so fortunate. I want everyone to reach into their wallets, purses, or even on their phones and look at pictures of their children, grandchildren or younger siblings and think about how this type of a diagnosis would make you feel."

She began running through another set of slides:

**Slide 1:** This slide featured a side-by-side of a beautiful blonde-haired, blue-eyed toddler on one side, and a bald, pale child in an intensive care unit on a respirator.

"Maggie and her family weren't so lucky," Abby informed them. "They lived paycheck to paycheck with both parents working and five other siblings at home. Maggie passed away two days before her third birthday of the same cancer I had. Her family never received the counseling and support they needed. They lost their daughter and were left in financial ruin. Their marriage also crumbled. This family was torn apart by the stress of coping with the treatment required for a child with cancer. It was all avoidable."

They listened intently as Abby went through a few more slides featuring children who had either died or survived, but suffered lasting effects to their families due to finances or just stress through the process.

"Our goal at the new Pediatric Oncology unit is to provide comprehensive medical and psychological care, along with opening up a research center that will work directly with John's Hopkins, the Mayo clinic, MD Anderson, and St. Jude's Hospital to find better treatments for childhood cancers. We will treat not just the child but support the family. In addition, Luke and I just closed on a building near the hospital known as 'The Parkway' and will be converting it into a apartments with two shared floors for families who live too far to commute daily to the hospital while their children are inpatient. Demolition begins this coming Monday and I'm happy to say this will be a joint venture between Saguero Trust LLC and Grey Construction."

Abby glances at a nervous looking Elliott, raises her glass, and toasts, "To Elliott Grey and Grey Construction for their assistance with this project along with the additional wing to the hospital. Estimated completion time eighteen months."

Christian couldn't help but glare at his brother. "How long have you known Elliott?" he whispered menacingly toward his brother.

"I designed the plans a month ago and picked up all the permits yesterday," he replied. I didn't find out until yesterday that you were bidding on the property.

Abby continued scrolling through the side, showing the facility mock-ups of the Pediatric Emergency Room, the Pediatric Oncology Ward and Clinic, the Oncology private practice suits, the private and group therapy rooms, the isolation ward, and finally three floors that will be the research center.

"I'll close reiterating, I was one of the lucky ones. I not only survived, but I thrived due to the right support through it all, and again after. I learned that everything happens for a reason. Sometimes you don't see the why until much later. I'm no different from anyone else here. Will I be alive in ten years? Hopefully, but I could be dead from anything, including a relapse. All I know is when I finally pass on, the first person I meet in heaven or hell isn't the person who I should have become. My brother taught me to live like there isn't a tomorrow.

"I know I've met people who believe my brother pushed me too hard academically but the reality is, I played league soccer two years after my transplant. I took dancing lessons along with martial arts. I traveled, painted, and volunteered all around the globe. Hell, he even took me sky diving and taught me how to ride a motorcycle. All the while his message, silent but clear, _live for today just in case_. I've danced in the moonlight in Hawaii. The nerd that Luke is, he took me on the _Lord of the Rings_ tour in New Zealand – best two weeks ever by the way. Surviving cancer means living without regrets. If I die tomorrow, it is without regret whatsoever. Personally, I'd like to see others who are in my situation when I was younger have that same opportunities I was blessed with. Given the proper treatment, support, and ongoing research, more people will have that chance. Thank you!"

Abby left the stage to applause, while Grace took her place with a remote in hand. "We have a few special messages accompanied with donation pledges, but first I'd like to announce that the Gates Foundation have donated five million dollars to the Pediatric Oncology Unit and Research Center."

The video played of actors, rappers, politicians, and other celebrities briefly explaining how pediatric cancer has affected their friends and family. The last was Latin rap artist Juan Miguel Sorreno, who explained the effect of pediatric cancer on his musical family. He was young and the hottest thing in rap music performing and mixing today.

"I met Dr. Aguero when she was a fellow at John's Hopkins. When you play in a band, your bandmates, roadies, and those that travel with you become like family. We were in Baltimore for a concert when the child of one of the band members became ill and was admitted to Hopkins. After endless tests, Abby was called in for a consult. She gave us the diagnosis with compassion and helped build not just a treatment plan for the child, but for all of us to get through this. She may look like an unruly, petulant child but that woman is tough as nails, yet compassionate. She was there through every treatment, every hospital stay, and every step forward. The band and I would like to donate two million dollars to the pediatric research center, and fifty percent of the net proceeds of our upcoming tour of the Americas will be donated to Saguero Trust to assist with the treatment of underprivileged pediatric oncology patients and their families."

With a click of the button, the tally board was up to thirty three million dollars for the hospital. "Anyone wishing to donate, please feel free to drop an envelope into one of the donation baskets around the stage," Grace continued. "At the end of the night we'll have a final number for our fundraiser. Let the dancing begin."

The band began playing and couples took to the dance floor. The music and festivities went late into the night when Grace took to the stage once again and thanked everyone for their contributions, before announcing the sixty-million dollar donation total.

"Time for me to be nosey," Christian informed Ana as he kissed her cheek and headed Sawyer, Taylor and Welch who appeared to be catching up with each other by the CCTV monitor tent.

"Well Sawyer," Christian began, "looks like you've done well for yourself."

"Call me Luke, Mr. Grey," he replied. "And I can't complain – business is good and my sister finally moved to Seattle."

Christian could see by the look on Luke's face that he was waiting for his former boss to inquire more about the government contract he'd acquired. After a second of thought, he decided to try another route, "It's amazing how you and your sister look nothing alike. Even height-wise, you're what, six-five or six-six, and she's what? Five flat at best?"

Luke laughed. "We each take after our fathers." He paused for a moment before adding, "Sorry about Parkway. We knew there were corporations attempting to purchase it, but we went directly to the owners and purchased not just Parkway, but three other locations around Seattle as well. Had we known GEH was involved in the bidding…"

Christian laughed and slapped him on the back, "It wouldn't have made a difference. It's business. I get it. Still, how did you and your sister secure it at such a bottom dollar price?"

He laughed. "Have you met my sister? She can be extremely persuasive when she wants something. She just looked up at Mr. Ontiveros with her big brown eyes, pulled out her plans and showed them to him, while I pulled out the Saguero Trust checkbook." Again he paused for a moment, then continued with a smirk. "Remind you of anyone?"

All four men laughed, before Christian, Taylor, and Welch replied in unison, "Ana"

"Exactly. That's why when I worked for you I was protective of her," Luke sighed. "Ana and Abby are quite alike – just swap brown eyes for blue. Protecting Ana was like watching over Abby."

They all looked over at the dance floor, where Mia and Ethan, Elliott and Kate, and, Abby and Javi were all dancing to Latin club music along with some of the younger guests who stayed for the after party.

"Ana was showing me pictures of Teddy," Luke commented as he loosened his tie and unbuttoned the top button of his shirt. "I can't believe how big he's gotten and Phoebe is adorable. Congratulations!"

"Thank you Luke. I hear you took on Rodriguez as your business partner," Christian commented as he struggled to keep even a hint of contempt from his voice at the topic of Jose Rodriguez.

"I did. He's a great photographer but a better engineer. Between the two of us we combed some of the top universities around the country to balance out our team with new graduates – fresh minds if you will," Luke explained. "Jose is mechanical engineering. I'm the polymer guy. Jake is the mad computer genius-slash-hacker type of guy, among other things; and so the list goes. It works, though I hate feeling like the old man of the shop when I'm about to turn forty."

"Quit whining Luke," Welch ordered. "At least you're not pushing fifty."

Taylor laughed at Welch, "Technically Welch, you are pushing fifty-five."

"So what are you developing?" Christian asked curiously.

"Sorry, it's classified," Luke informed him. "But I will say, at some point in the next few months I might come knocking at your door with a solution to your casing issue on that communications technology project for Africa that you've been working on for five years."

"Really? Now I'm intrigued," Christian replied rubbing his chin.

"I knew you would be sir," Luke replied looking at his watch. "It's midnight. Abby will turn into a pumpkin if I don't get her home soon. She's covering the pediatric wing on a twelve hour shift tomorrow starting at seven am. It was good seeing you all."

Once Luke left them, Christian turned to Welch and Taylor ordering them to leave no stone unturned and find out more on Luke's company and the contract, along with an updated background check on Luke.

"I'll tell you right now sir," Taylor informed him "the updated background check won't tell us anything on Luke. Like his sisters' it's intentionally vague – carefully compiled."

"We met Luke in Afghanistan when he was sent into our unit looking for a traitor," Welch continued. "He wasn't a marine but convincingly portrayed one. Taylor was set up as a traitor and within a few days of Luke's arrival, Jason had been cleared. It took Luke a few months to find the appropriate person, but he saved our military careers.

"As a thanks, we took him for to Stuttgart to celebrate and thank him, when we landed, there was the then senator in charge of the intelligence committee waiting for him along with a dozen operatives," Welch continued. "That was the day his mother and her husband were killed in the accident. He was immediately shuttled home. After that I managed to find out a few things about Luke Sawyer – before joining our unit, he was on a submarine for a few months performing a similar task. Rumor was back then that he was a high-level intelligence operative, and based on the senator's presence to notify him of the accident, it wouldn't surprise me if it were true."

Taylor continued. "There were all kinds of rumors flying around about Luke when Welch and I returned to Afghanistan; like – he speaks a dozen or more languages, he was Ivy League educated then but now has multiple degrees, he's a trust fund kid, and not only was he a U.S. operative but he handled some special situations for Interpol as a favor for the U.S. government."

"He also had very strong ties in and around Africa," Welch added. "Supposedly he speaks many dialects and helped build a large, stand-by intelligence network throughout the continent."

"So what was he doing working for me?" Christian asked.

"I kept up with Luke after Stuttgart," Welch explained. "He worked at the Pentagon once his sister's treatment was completed, but he didn't want to start traveling again for his _job_, as he called it. By the time I called him about the position, his sister was in the Fellowship program, they'd taken in a stray, Javi, and he was looking for a change. You have to remember, this was originally a short-term position. From what he said he needed some time to sort the past decade or so of his life out. That's why he took the position."

"So when Abby made the Sawyer, Luke Sawyer – James Bond reference, she may not have been too far off the mark," Christian wondered aloud.

"Somehow I doubt we'll ever know it all," Welch added. "I mean, look at his sister – well-educated at a young age, something Luke and her share in common. He finished college on his first degree at fifteen. Both of their fathers' were wealthy. Neither of them ever had to work for a living. Abby's worth at least eight-hundred million U.S. dollars but from what I've been able to find out, she's worth ten times that and it's kept in Brazil from her father's oil business. Luke's father dabbled quite successfully in the stock market – especially technology. It took some digging but Luke's trust fund, which he has rarely touched other than when Abby was sick and today, is estimated in the five-hundred million dollar range."

Taylor rubbed his temples as he listened to Welch. "Why do I get the feeling there's more to Luke being employed at GEH than we think there is?"

"I was just thinking the exact same thing," Christian replied uncertainly. "Gentleman, start digging. If Uncle Sam was looking for information on me, I want to know what that information was and if Luke passed them anything."

"Will do," Welch replied as Christian turned to leave.


	2. Chapter 2

**_Author's note_****_: I'd like to thank AnonymousGirlOne. When I wrote Chapter 2 originally, I felt like there was something I didn't have right. Her review pointed out that I kept shifting perspective from Kate's to my normal (in other things I've written) to a more narrative style. Therefore, Chapter 2 has had some edits, though nothing significant. Thank you AnonymousGirlOne. I really appreciate it!_**

**Chapter 2**

After a few years as part of the Grey family, one thing I've learned is, like me, they are obsessed with cars. Everyone has _their_ brand – well, almost everyone. Ana will drive anything. She still misses her old Wanda – the classic baby blue VW Beetle that matched her eyes. Or as I like to call it – the death trap on wheels and Jose's way to see her more during our college years. Christian loves his Audis. Grace and Carrick love their Mercedes, just like my parents. It must be an old person thing. Mia is an Acura girl. My ball and chain, Elliott, loves his trucks- preferred brand the Chevy Silverado with all the bells and whistles for work; yet when he's not working, like me, he loves his BMW. We each drive BMW X5 xDrive50is – mine is blue, his is grey. I love that man!

It's been a long last few weeks. Elliott's business has taken off in the past year with half a dozen new large-scale commercial projects and as of last week, the addition of a new wing to the hospital and Parkway. It was tough watching him stressed out at the fundraiser last night, knowing he had signed on to tear down Parkway and rebuild in its place, especially once he learned Christian was in the running for the building. Ironic how for the past year Elliott has been living in the world of non-disclosure agreements, normally limited to his brother's life. Four of his larger projects were with companies who received large government grants, so as the selected contractor, he had to sign an NDA both personally and as the Grey Construction owner, along with all of his employees.

I ran my fingers through my blonde hair as I pull up to the security gate to Ana and Christian's home. "Crap, I'm turning into Christian." After a quick sneak peek back at my sleeping blonde-haired daughter, my clone as Christian called one-year-old Ava, and couldn't help but smile. Opening the window and pushed the gate's speaker button.

"Welcome to Grey Compound," Ryan's voice came through the intercom. "How may I help you?"

I couldn't help but laugh. "Come on Ryan. I know you can see me. Get the stick out of your backside and buzz me through or you'll be on the receiving end of a Kate Kavanagh bitch-out!"

"I'm sorry _Mrs. Grey_, but you'll need an appointment or at the very least today's password," he replied mockingly.

_Ryan is an ass. Love him!_ "The password is Ryan is asshole. Now open the gate or I'll tell my cousin the man she's dating has a boy toy on the side."

Ryan's laughter boomed through the speaker. "You wouldn't Kate." Clearly he knew better as he added, "You'd probably print it in the paper with compromising Photoshopped pictures."

"You know me too well," she replied laughing as he triggered the gate to open. Every time I drive up to this house, I love it more and more. Ryan greets me as I park near the front door. "Nothing like a hug from the bear of a man who is stringing my cousin along for a year and a half," I taunt him after he hugged me.

"So," I couldn't help but ask as he passed me Ava and the baby bag, "when are you going to make an honest woman of my cousin? You guys have been dating for what, eighteen months. It's about time, don't you think?"

Ryan laughed. "All in due time. Just don't go printing any engagement announcements just yet."

"So tempting," I sighed as he opened the front door to the main house. "We'll have to catch up at dinner later this week."

"Definitely," he replied before he turned and left.

"Aunt Kate! Aunt Kate!" Teddy cried out happily as he ran to her and grabbed her leg. God I love this little guy even if he is a pint-sized version of his fucking father. "Can Ava play with me?"

One look at Teddy and it was clear what Christian looked like as a small child, except Teddy had Ana's blue eyes, rather than his father's grey ones. This boy was his father's child in every way, shape and form. He loved his toy helicopters and airplanes, ran his fingers through his wavy copper colored hair when he was anxious, and was smart as all hell. After Ana read him the books she'd gotten him, he used them to build a landing pad for his toy helicopters.

"Sure sweetie, once she's awake. Where's your mom?"

"Cooking," Teddy exclaimed as he grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the kitchen. "Faster Auntie Kate!"

_Definitely Christian's son – control freak_, I couldn't help but laugh. He had to lead the way to the kitchen and set the pace. _Genetics are a fascinating thing_.

"Mommy!" Teddy screamed causing Ana to startle and drop the box of eggs she was holding. Sue me - I couldn't help but snicker. "Auntie Kate is here!"

"Teddy, use your inside voice," Ana informed him while I tried to control my laughter. Once again my friend was lost in her thoughts, probably about the latest manuscript she was reading, when she was brought out of her alternate universe with a shout. Over the years I'd seen it happen dozens of times, yet each time it was still funny to see.

"Sowwy mommy," he replied sadly staring at the mess on the kitchen floor.

"Ick," Ava mumbled as she attempted to wipe the sleepiness from her eyes. "Eggs bwoken," she added.

"Yes sunshine," I mumbled kissing her cheek.

"Down mommy?" Ava asked. The second her tiny ballet flats hit the floor, Teddy dragged her to his toy room.

"Not so fast Teddy, she's smaller than you," Ana called to her son.

"Okay" At least he slowed down.

After cleaning up the leaking box of eggs from the floor, Ana pulled a tray from the oven. It smelled and looked wonderful. "What's breakfast?"

"Egg scrambles in croissant shells," Ana replied. "I gorged myself on these at a bakery near work while pregnant with Phoebe and I still can't get enough of them. "I was going to make another batch for the freezer but the eggs went skydiving."

"At least the eggs survive the trip from the grocery store now," I reminded her. "Remember how many dozens of eggs you broker on your way home from the grocery store during college. Wanda needed new shock absorbers but you didn't want to monopolize Jose's time with the old junker."

_Yeah, I deserved Ana's glare_. I knew it was coming when I insulted her Wanda. We sat at the breakfast bar together and had their egg croissant, tea, and fruit. _Damn it, I wish I could actually cook like this._

"So how are things with Elliott?"

"He's swamped at work. Grey Construction has tripled in size this year due to new contracts. He's good though but he feels guilty about Parkway," I explain.

"Even Christian can't win them all," Ana commented. "He's got bigger fish to fry than losing Parkway. All I know is KMA Acquisitions moved from the east coast to Seattle in the past year and it seems they are constantly going head-to-head after the same companies. At least they both lost Parkway."

"I'm interviewing the she-bitch that runs KMA this week," I inform her as Christian enters the kitchen to refill his coffee cup.

"You're interviewing KMA's CEO, Tina Mubarek?" Christian asked with interest. "That bitch has been a thorn in my side for the past year."

"Swear jar now," Ana ordered as she pointed toward the large ceramic jug on the kitchen counter. "Swearing should be checked at the door." She turned to me and added, "You too. You know the rules – you called her a she-witch, minus the W plus the B."

Reluctantly I handed Christian a ten-dollar-bill to add to the jar, then added a few twenties. "Now I have jar credit. That bitch, I'd use the c-word but that's still too nice and there are tender ears around here… where was I… that bitch made the interview contingent that I was the interviewer. I don't know what you did to piss the cow off Christian, but not only am I doing a print piece, but before that I have to do an on-camera interview for my father's new television station."

"Really?" Christian asked.

"At work I use my maiden name, even though legally I'm Kate Grey. She would only sign the damned agreement if I used my legal name for both interviews. So, what did you do to piss the nasty cow off?"

"M&A can be a competitive, gritty world. My guess is she takes losing as poorly as I do," he replied with an embarrassed smirk.

"You do realize her ultimate goal is to bring GEH to its knees, right? I met with her on Friday to set the interview parameters. She's arrogant and manipulative, with the intelligence to back it up. She knew I would tell you," I offered. "How much have your security team dug up on her? Anything I could use to make her squirm during the live interview?"

Christian laughed. "Glad your reporter instincts are pointed toward humiliating her and not me for a change. She's thirty-eight, Stanford-educated with a master's in business. She returned to Stanford after taking five or so years working for an international think-tank and completed law school. Her life growing up was unremarkable, as were her parents. She's single, never married and no children. She founded KMA a year ago in Delaware. Where the financial backing for the company came from I don't know and haven't been able to find out, but within sixty days of forming the corporation, she moved it to Seattle and began pursuing the businesses GEH has been targeting. Her first few attempts weren't successful, but her last three were, if you don't count Parkway."

"It just doesn't make sense. I mean, she's knew to the M&A world," Ana comments. "Why would she take on a giant? That's beyond arrogance. It's a huge gamble because if she fails, she appears to be a reckless businesswoman."

"That's a point I plan on driving home during our live interview. I mean her lack of experience and the unknown source of her funding. Those two things should make her squirm a bit," I respond. "Finding the source of her funding has been difficult. I have my dad reaching out to his government contacts to see what he can find out. I mean, when you started Christian, didn't the government check into your funding sources and the nature of your deals?"

He nodded. "They did but everything was above board. I can't imagine the government allowing her to proceed if they didn't have all the answers on KMA. It has me intrigued."

"You and me both Grey, so if you think of any embarrassing questions for her before Wednesday evening, let me know."

"You can always ask her is she's gay," Ana taunted with a smirk. They all broke out laughing.

"She's a bad-ass bitch, but if you'd heard about her reputation outside of work, she's clearly not into women," I reply with disgust. "There are even rumors about her when she worked for the think-tank that she screwed half the guys there as she walked over them career-wise. I would love to be able to confirm that so I could confront her live on the air with names and dates, to ask her what it felt like to work her way up the ladder on her back. My dad is trying to get me an employee list for the think tank for the years she was there. We're hoping that might shed a better light on her. My gut is telling me I'm missing something and it's something big."

"Any idea what?" Ana and Christian asked at the same time.

"I'm not sure. I feel like I'm at the planetarium and each point of light over-head is another piece of the puzzle and they are spinning around me taunting me to connect the dots. There are just so many pieces," I respond as I rub my eyes. "I just can't shake the feeling this is potentially the biggest story of my career and I need to tread lightly because the Grey name is part of the puzzle. Around every corner, she's pulling the Grey name into it. There's got to be more than this. When it comes to not knowing something, I'm worse than you will ever be Christian. Right now, I'd like to tie that bitch up and beat her with a stick until she told me, but I can't help but feel she'd laugh in my face."

Taylor entered carrying a small box though it was his day off. It was odd to see the normally serious and well-dressed Taylor in jeans and a tee-shirt. _The suit hid an awfully fine piece of man meat_, I thought. Gail was one lucky woman.

"Good morning Mr. and Mrs. Grey, and Mrs. Gray," he stated. The look on his face revealed the phrase sounded odd. "This package just arrived by messenger addressed to me, but the note indicated once I scanned it, that I should give it to you unopened.

My curiosity was peeked as Christian took the box from Taylor and opened it. After removing what felt like endless packing material, he removed a four-by-six inch hard vinyl-like material and examined it closely. A moment later he was grinning like a Cheshire cat as he did his best to bend the material, then cut it, and finally melt it. In the box was a note and I was curious. I hoped he'd read it aloud. I couldn't help but tap my foot on the marble floor as I waited impatiently for him to share the knowledge.

When he put the short note onto the countertop, Ana and I couldn't resist a peek. It read:

_Not quite there yet, but getting closer. Six to eight weeks tops…. Luke_

"Is that what I think it is?" Jason asked as Christian handed him the material. Christian nodded. "And Luke developed this?"

"Apparently so," Christian grinned. "Once he has the final polymer, I'll have to negotiate with him for use of the formula. He's going to be a very rich man."

"He already is," Jason replied.

"If he manages to finalize this material, he could potentially become a billionaire in under a year. There will be so many uses for it," Christian commented still looking at the material in awe. "I mean, I've had a team working on something like this for five years and we haven't even come close to what he's accomplished in under a year."

"What are you planning on using it for?" I ask curiously.

I was surprised when Ana replied. She usually stays out of GEH business. "Christian has been attempting to develop a new type of cellular phone that will withstand all different types of climates, self-charging, inexpensive to manufacture, so he could distribute them to the poor who live a more nomadic lifestyle in the third world – mainly in Africa."

"And I want to give them away for free to those who need them; especially given the situation in Dafur," he added. "Human Rights violations could be reported in real time, along with thefts of humanitarian relief supplies."

Taylor's cell phone rings, interrupting the conversation. "Taylor, he replies sternly. After a brief pause, he replies, "hang on Luke. I'll put you on speaker."

"Are there ladies present or can I swear up a storm," Luke asked with a chuckle.

"Good morning Luke," Ana responded. "If you swear you need to give me a twenty for the swear jar. All the money goes to charity."

"So what you're saying is that your husband's mouth will fill a food pantry?" he asks.

"Probably," Christian replies with a laugh. "This polymer is amazing. What is left to do to it?"

"Honestly, I think it's ready, but I want to run a few more tests. It passed heat, water, ax, hammer, but since it will have a few other uses other than yours, it needs to pass the firearms test, explosives test, and a few acid tests," he replied.

"What other uses?" I ask.

"Hey Kate! Where's that husband of yours with the blueprints for our facility addition?" Luke taunted me. "I know he's busy, but tell Elliott if he wants me to allow him to win at pool, I need my blueprints. After all, I'm cheap, not easy."

"Get your head out of your ass Luke," I reply tartly. "I can beat you at pool any day, even drunk."

"Challenge accepted. Friday night, my place, bring Elliott and anyone else you wouldn't mind being embarrassed in front of with you. The more the merrier," Luke laughed. "I'll even make that sister of mine cook us dinner."

"Get yourself a wife and let your sister have a life," I couldn't but reply.

"Taking care of me keeps her from dating and let's be real, Mia has been a bad influence for the past few weeks dragging her out clubbing."

"You're an overprotective asshole, you know that right?" I laughed at him.

"And proud of it," he replied. "Now shut up blondie. I have business with Mr. Grey that doesn't concern your sorry ass. So Mr. Grey, we're doing the firearms and explosive tests Tuesday afternoon. Care to join us? Feel free to bring Ros, Taylor, Welch, and the rest of the team. Also, bring Barney. I want him to meet my IT guy. I'll give you more details about that then."

"Deal, just get Taylor the details," Christian replied.

"Bring your checkbook Mr. Grey. You'll need it," Luke laughed before he hung up.

"It's hard to believe that is my Luke Sawyer," Ana commented with a smile. "When he was my CPO I saw hints of it, but he was good at keeping up the façade, though there was always mischief in his eyes. I like this side of Luke. He's amusing. Heck, I'm jealous, he really seems to be comfortable in his own skin."

"Why the hell did he work as a CPO if he had these type of skills?" I muttered aloud. I didn't mean to say what I was thinking but it slipped causing all three of them to stare at me. After a few uncomfortable seconds, I had to elaborate. "I'm sorry, but he's filthy rich, good looking, well-educated and hilarious. Elliott and I have spent a great deal of time with him this past year. So, why work as a CPO? He was a spy for God's sake. He stepped back when he was twenty-six and I get the situation then, but he was one of the best. He broke into an Iranian prison and freed another spy and was on the run for two weeks through Iran and Iraq before crossing the border into Kuwait. He worked mainly in Africa building an intelligence network over the course of three years. He had the espionage world at his feet. He was a fucking prodigy at fifteen. All of the intelligence agencies were fighting for him. They all wanted to educate and train him to be more. He told the head of the FBI to fuck off when he was fifteen years old, followed by the CIA I might add. A fucking prodigy. It was worth repeating. Why work as a CPO?"

The look on Christian, Ana, and Taylor's faces was priceless. Shock didn't cover it. I wanted to reach out and push each of their jaws up to close their mouths.

"How do you know all this?" Taylor asked. "All of our background checks on him provided hints of his education but otherwise they were vague, like his sisters."

"Did you run checks on mommy and daddy Sawyer?" I couldn't help but gloat. _My inner bitch was dancing around yelling, I know something Christian and his goon squad don't!_ It as almost better than sex… well, almost… well not really, but it oh so fucking good! "His mother and her forbearer's were connected in the intelligence community since the eighteen hundreds. It was a family of prodigies. He's a legacy and a damned good one. So why would this legacy, who had the world at his feet, work as a CPO for a billionaire, when he doesn't need the money?"

"How long have you known all this?" Christian asked. Clearly he was still in shock. His fingers were tilling that head of hair like it was planting season.

"I started to realize that he was different from the other CPOs when he started protecting Ana," I informed them. "So I did some digging, pulled some strings, and then had my father pull some strings. I've been keeping a folder on Luke for years, slowly adding to it. I have to admit, I was concerned when he dragged Jose into his business but then I realized they started talking about it when Ray had his accident years ago and the fact that Jose was top of his engineering program, so it kind of made sense. I know you don't care for Jose, Christian, but beyond that shy, awkward, insecure exterior is a brilliant mind."

There was no missing the glances exchanged between Christian and Taylor. They'd had similar thoughts lately, with less data. _Hopefully Christian and Taylor won't ask me if I have folders on them. I'm a reporter, they should know better._

"Luke promised me he would never do anything to harm me or my family," Ana informed us unhappily. "He's a good man. I trust him."

"Don't be naïve Ana. Espionage and lying go hand-in-hand," I inform her. "GEH's success probably caused good old Uncle Sam to send him in to determine how Christian was so successful. When he found nothing, they pulled him."

"No," Ana sighed trying and failing to keep the bitterness out of her voice. I felt bad, but she was just so innocent sometimes. "I refuse to believe that. I mean, he was Taylor's second-in-command. He knew everything – the good, the bad, the ugly and the embarrassing. He promised me he would protect our family and as far as I'm concerned, if he was here to spy on us, he didn't share the information with anyone. I mean, his own sister didn't know he was my CPO for two years."

"We're still going to check," Christian informed her. "If you're right, we'll find nothing. For the record, I want to believe you are right."

My mind drifted back to the nighttime sky as all of the data elements swirled around me head, like tiny planets trying to penetrate my thick skull. Most people assume blondes are stupid. Those are the people I want to make feel stupid. I'm a natural blonde and I'm anything but stupid. I wear my intelligence and inner bitch attitude as badges of honor. I couldn't resist closing my eyes and rubbing my temples. KMA, GEH, Sawyer – KMA, GEH Sawyer – nothing like a mantra to achieve a meditative-like state – KMA, GEH, Sawyer… "Fuck! I have to go. I need to be consumed by my Smart Board. Watch Ava for me. I'll be back in a few hours," I exclaimed as I grabbed my purse and ran out the front door.

I hop into my BMW and get through the gate as fast as I can. Knowing my dear brother-in-law, he try to have Taylor follow me. Not today Jason – today I'm doing my best Mario Andretti through Seattle's finest neighborhood. Damned the speed limit. It's Sunday, so there should be no traffic as I head to my office downtown. I need my Smart Board. Outside of work, Elliot is my husband. At work, I'm married to my Smart Board, which resides at my father's newspaper building – penthouse naturally. _Man, am I spoiled._

Twenty minutes later, I stand before my precious 55-inch Smart Board. I'm a technology whore just like Christian; yet I'll never admit to being anything like him, or him like me. A few seconds later, my KMA data is on the screen. I pull one of my many flash drives from my wall safe and plug it into the board and split the screen into upper and lower regions. Bringing my Sawyer timeline onto the screen, I begin comparing it to the KMA timeline I developed. Luke left GEH 1 year ago, and KMA filed incorporation papers in Delaware thirty days before that. Coincidence? I think not. I'm a reporter. I don't believe in coincidences. My spidey sense is tingling so hard if it heads into my pants I'll have a big O without trying.

I can't help myself. I bring up Luke's bio-timeline that I was able to compile for his life and underneath it I place the compiled timeline for Tina Mubarek. "Well fuck me," I mutter under my breath.

Immediately, I grab my phone and dial Christian. To hell with pleasantries, when he picks up all I can say is "I got it. I found the link."

In a split second my excitement over my discovery turns to terror as I'm grabbed from behind and immediately feel a needle inject something into my neck. "Let go," I manage to scream.

"Sorry Grey, you're collateral damage now. Say good-bye to your friends. Leave her here, this penthouse is going to blow in under five minutes." This was the last thing I heard other than Christian's concerned voice calling out to me from my cell phone. I realize my life is over a darkness overtakes me.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

No sooner than Mr. Grey yelled into his phone for Kate, I dialed Welch and immediately had him track her phone. My second call was to Ryan, ordering him to get the entire team on alert. Mr. Grey and I were heading out with part of the team, the remaining team members would remain here to watch over Mrs. Grey and the children.

"Keep the line with your sister-in-law open Mr. Grey," Taylor ordered as he pulled him toward the front door. "We're heading toward the city. Put the call on speaker."

As they got in the car, the call was silent. Not a peep from Kate or whomever attacked her. A minute later they heard gunshots on the other end of the call, but they appeared distant when compared to the receiver. The sound of gunshots were disrupted by an explosion immediately before the call ended.

"Fuck!" Christian swore. While Christian wasn't a big fan of Kate's, I knew he respected her. Hell, he won't admit it but he'd even grown to like her. She may be brash, but in many ways she was just as driven as he was; so it was, in some ways I imagine, of him looking into a mirror and seeing part of himself. Well part of himself with long blonde wavy hair and naturally breasts that make plastic surgeons jealous.

The second my phone rang, I answered and put him on speaker, "Where is she Welch?"

"Her office tower Taylor," he replied. "I've got the rest of the team heading there from different locations. Quickest ETA if 20 minutes."

"We're about 20 minutes out at his point," I replied informed him.

"Holy fuck!" Welch exclaimed. "We're too late. Breaking news – The penthouse office suite of the Seattle Times was blown to pieces two minutes ago. Fire trucks and police are responding, along with the FBI. At best we're going to be waiting downstairs."

"Keep us posted," I ordered. "We've got some phone calls to make."

I dialed Ryan, given his FBI experience and swapped him out with Reynolds. Ryan would meet us at the scene. I listened to Mr. Grey call his brother and father, asking them to meet him at the office building. A few years ago, he could have made that call without any emotion in his voice; now, his voice is cracking with the emotion he's trying to suppress. He knows, as well as I do, that given what we heard, odds are Kate was in the penthouse when it blew. If she was, hopefully she was dead before the powerful blast ripped her body to shreds.

The drive felt like it took forever. Twenty minutes felt like two hours. We arrived, with Ryan not far behind us – all dreading Elliot Grey's arrival. Carrick and Grace arrived first – thank goodness. Together from a block away, where the police set up the perimeter, we saw the top two floors of the building completely obliterated. Glass, brick, and steel were scattered almost the full length of the block.

"Kate was in there," Mr. Grey informed his parents. "She was working on a lead for a story about KMA. She called me on my cell phone telling me she figured it out. She screamed, then nothing. Whoever attacked her called her collateral damage, then gunshots rang out, then the explosion, and the call cut off."

"Where's Ava?" Grace asked. The shock was clearly visible on her face. I don't think I'd ever seen Dr. Trevelyan quite so pallid.

"With Ana," he replied.

"Taylor!" someone shouted from a distance.

I heard my name being called through the growing crowd. Within moments Elliot Grey arrived. His eyes were glued fixed on the destroyed penthouse offices. He didn't greet anyone. He merely asked his brother if Kate was at his house. Mr. Grey shook his head negatively.

"Fuck!" Elliot yelled before crashing through the barrier. When a cop tried to stop him, he informed him that his wife was in there and that he was the one who built the penthouse structure, so he knew all the hidden passages leading to the lower levels. "So just let me in so I can make a fucking difference."

I have to admit, I'd never seen a pissed off Elliot Grey before. He's always so upbeat, calm, and mischievous. If you had told me that an angry Elliot instilled more fear in me than Christian on his worst day I wouldn't have believed it.

Before the officer could answer, his radio exploded with chatter_. Dispatch three coroner's wagons and two ambulances. We've retrieved five dead and one severely injured so far. Recovery efforts are ongoing. _

Dr. Trevelyan pulled out her ID and crossed the barrier as she approached the officer. "Excuse me, but I'm a physician. If you have a casualty, I would like to offer my services until the ambulance can arrive."

You just have to love Dr. T. - even if Kate wasn't a potential victim, she would have stepped forward to help. After a brief radio conversation between the officer and the lead investigator on scene, Dr. T was escorted into the heart of the action. Elliot was ordered back behind the barrier and was none too happy about it.

And again, we waited. Christian Grey waits for no man – or so he says. Today he waits, impatiently, swearing along with his brother and father. Me, well, I hate waiting but I've always prepared for the worst and hoped for the best. I know in situations like these, all casualties and fatalities might take a day or more to recover. It was a bad sign when an hour later cadaver dogs were brought in to search the remnants of the top two floors. I have to admit, the Seattle Fire Department were quick and apparently thorough in their declaring part of the penthouse-remnants stable enough for a search.

Carrick's phone vibrated loudly and all our eyes turned toward him. He read the text from Dr. T:

_4 dead – all male ID, all had CIA issued IDs on them – all GSW head – died b4 explosion; 1 injured male GSW to the shoulder w/ head trauma – ID: Luke Sawyer/condition semi-conscious and serious. No sign of Kate yet._

"What the heck was Luke Sawyer doing in the newspaper office?" Carrick asked.

Christian and I exchanged a quick glance before he informed his father that he didn't know. Naturally he neglected to tell him we had an idea, but until we had all the facts our lips were sealed. I have to admit, this entire situation with Sawyer was killing me. I know him. I mean, I really feel like I knew him. He's like a brother to me. I owe him. I'll always owe him. Yes, he's a spy. Yes, Welch and I had some idea he was a spy years ago. He salvaged both my career and Welch's. I want to believe innocent until proven guilty, but four dead CIA agents; Luke's potential spying on GEH and Mr. Grey while he worked for him, leave me with doubt. The doubts sicken me. If I had more than a buzz-cut, I'd be running my fingers through my hair in frustration like Grey does. I've spent too many year working for that man already. He's rubbing off. I was grateful when my phone vibrated.

"Taylor," I answered as gunshots rang out from the partially destroyed office building. I dragged the Grey's into the Audi SUV – thankfully Christian was paranoid enough to have one made that was bulletproof after the Jack Hyde incident. I put the call on speaker. "Ryan, what's going on out there? Is Dr. T safe? What has your FBI contact told you?"

"Dr. T is safely locked away in one of the ambulance," he informed us. "She could barely keep Sawyer contained. He looked like shit. What a bloody mess he is. He kept insisting he had to go back in as his partner didn't make it out and there were at least two more gunmen in the building. The cops wouldn't allow him to go back into the building in his condition, but he punched one of them in the face, flashed a badge and marched back in with my FBI contacts behind him. The building power was cut during the attack but I'm going to send Welch a link to tap into the security cameras inside the building as they have their own remote power. Maybe he'll get some idea of what the hell happened."

Suddenly it sounded like a warzone outside. The police were forcing everyone another block further away.

"You're not going to believe this T," Ryan continued, "but Jose Rodriguez just walked out of the building carrying Kate Grey in his arms." We heard Ryan curse as he pulled the phone away from his ear. "Dr. Trevelyan, get back into the ambulance. We'll bring her to you when the shooting stops and it's safe for them to cross the street to your location." After a brief pause, he firmly commanded her to get back into the damned ambulance and that she wouldn't do any good to Kate if she had a bullet in her head. When he returned his attention to our call, he muttered that woman was stubborn. "Kate is unconscious but she doesn't have any outward sign of trauma other than a bump on the head. Rodriguez looks like he took a round to the arm, but otherwise none the worse for wear."

"That's my wife," Elliot commented after letting out the breath he'd been holding almost since he arrived. "Survive and explosion, then be pulled out of the building looking like sleeping beauty. I don't know whether I should kiss her or kill her for putting herself at risk."

_Yup, Elliot was sounding more and more like little brother Christian_, I thought to myself each and every day – putting herself at risk. That's a Christian Grey line, not Elliot.

"Elliot," Ryan interrupted my thoughts. "They are taking her to the ambulance. You might want to head to the hospital – ETA ten to fifteen minutes."

"On our way Ry," I told him. "Keep your eyes peeled and let me know what else you find out."

Before we could leave we heard a male voice through one of the crowd control officer's radios order everyone to pull back – explosion was imminent. All units were forced back from the building by the bomb squad. The ambulance carrying Dr. T, Jose Rodriguez and Kate Grey was on route to the hospital, and then, before the explosion hit with such impact, we were all pummeled with smoke and hot debris covering a two block area. The crowd, us included dove to the floor covering our heads.

"Ryan, are you okay?" I yelled into my phone after checking on the Grey's before getting up from the floor.

The phone connection was live and I had it on speaker, but all we heard was complete and utter chaos – moans of injured, orders being barked, and distant sounds of back up units arriving.

_We've got a dozen officers down – many critical. Dispatch additional units – police, fire, paramedic, ambulances, coroner, FBI and Homeland Security to the scene._

"_Put pressure on that leg wound before he fucking bleeds out," they heard Ryan order. "Wrap your god-damned belt around his leg if you have to."_

"_We lost him," came another voice._

"_Fuck!" Ryan yelled before coughing. "Do we have a count of how many were in the building when floors eighteen and nineteen blew?"_

"_Four of our FBI agents and the guy that went in with them," the agent informed him as he tried to not gag from the smoke._ _"If they were on either of those floors, there is no way they survived that explosion."_

"_We've got survivors coming down from inside the building!" a voice called. "Looks like four males – all FBI. Wounded but moving on their own sir."_

I forced the Grey's back into the car before covering my mouth is a handkerchief due to smoke. I couldn't resist trying to see through the now clearing smoke to see who managed to get out of the building. One by one the injured FBI agents exited the building under their own power. They appeared battered, bruising and dazed – but alive. I'm holding my breath, waiting to see if Luke got so lucky.

"Ryan," I call to him again through our open phone line. I get into the car and start driving. I put the phone on hands-free. "What's going on Ry?"

No answer. I glance back and the three Grey's in the rear of the SUV knowing the odds aren't good. The somber silence is broken by more official chatter coming through the phone line.

"_Where's my friend?" we heard Ryan demand._

_We heard coughing before a weak response came. "Firefight. He realized there were still undetonated explosives." More coughing. "He got his friends out, before he took a round to the leg. He was fading fast. He guided us toward a hidden staircase behind the safe room where his friends were hidden, but before we could get out all hell broke loose – rounds were flying again. He took one in the back. We couldn't get to him when the place exploded. We tried but just couldn't."_

"_Dammit Luke," they heard Ryan's voice break slightly before a coughing fit over-took him. "Always the fucking martyr. Fuck!"_

All I felt was complete and utter rage as I slammed my fists against the steering wheel. I pulled the SUV over, got out, slammed the door behind me and punched a nearby mailbox. I've been known to spout off a few obscenities in my day but here I stood, covered in ash and debris from the explosion, punching a mail box, swearing at the top of my lungs as I scared nearby pedestrians. I didn't give a shit. Fuck everyone. Yes my hand hurt. Yes it was probably broken, but did that stop me from punching the mail box again with the same fist – no. I dented the fucking thing before I leaned against a nearby building and sank to the ground.

I knew all three of the Grey's were standing before me and I didn't give a shit. Finally, I took a deep breath and I muttered, "As God as my fucking witness, I'm going to dig until I find out what the fuck was going on, then I'm going to take the fuckers down even if it's with a bullet to their fucking heads."

"That's a lot of fucks there Jason," Elliot commented as he squatted before me. "You kept saying _I'm_ but it's _we're_. We're going to get those fuckers."

"I agree Jason," Christian added.

"That makes all of us Jason," Carrick added sadly.

I felt Christian and Elliot each grab me by an arm and haul my sorry ass off the concrete. Carrick took the car keys from me and got behind the wheel while the brothers sat me in the back with my clearly broken hand raised to stem the swelling.

When we got to the hospital we were surrounded by chaos. I figured that would be the case. When the truck exploded in the parking garage under the World Trade Center years ago, all New York City hospitals went on stand-by – all staff called in. This was protocol for any disaster – explosions, plane crash, etc… I didn't give a damned about my hand. I was too numb. It wasn't a priority to me – I felt nothing. Right now, all I wanted was to see Kate and Rodriguez in one piece. Everything else had to be blocked out – easier said than done.

I listened as Christian called Ana, informing her of Kate's status. We exchanged a somber glance when he avoided telling her about Rodriguez being there or the loss of Sawyer. We knew that would be news better told in person. He ordered her to remain at the house under security.

Elliot dialed the senior Kavanagh informing him that Kate was at the hospital and from what we've heard appeared to only have minor injuries. After a few minutes, Elliot hung up the phone and declared that the elder Kavanagh was a fucking asshole who was more worried about his empire than his daughter. Apparently the fucker didn't ask about the status of his granddaughter either.

I don't know how long we sat in the ER waiting room by the ambulance bay door, but if felt like forever as we watched the injured being brought into the hospital. We all tensed when we saw Dr. Aguero take over triage duty. Eventually, she would have to be told about her brother, but right now, she was needed here – fully focused. So we all watched her.

She was examining patients quickly as they were wheeled in and giving orders – IV's, medications, tests, and in some cases declaring people dead and sending them to the morgue. All I hoped was one of the bodies brought into this hospital wouldn't be Luke's. This was the leading trauma hospital in Seattle, so I knew the worst injuries would be brought here.

"Crash cart – Now!" we heard her order as she climbed onto the gurney and began CPR on a new patient that was covered in blood. "Start an IV D5W push – stat! Have the paddles ready – we're going back."

We watched as the patient was wheeled into the ER and our wait continued. The waiting room filled with people with minor injuries from the debris. I was surprised to see Dr. Aguero return to the waiting room fifteen minutes later pushing a cart with one hand, while with the other she pulled her blood-covered scrubs top off revealing a tank top, and replaced her scrub top with a clean one.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before beginning to treat minor injuries in the waiting room. I watched her work for hours – soothing injured kids and adults alike as she treated their wounds. The sheer magnitude of the bleeding, followed by stitches she treated was unbelievable. Luke would be proud of his baby sister.

None of us noticed that Dr. Trevelyan now stood before us. Her face somber. She was clearly trying to retain her self-control. Carrick took one look at his wife, got to his feet and attempted to pull her into his arms. She merely took a step back, gestured a firm no with her hands, and glanced at Dr. Aguero for a split second. She then informed Elliot that Kate had been drugged and was still unconscious but would be fine. Once they had her in a room he could see her. Jose Rodriguez's injuries were also relatively minor. Kate would be held over-night for observation, but Rodriguez would be discharged in a few hours.

"I'm sorry," Grace informed us, again glancing at Dr. Aguero. "I have to go talk to Dr. Aguero."

I knew what was about to happen. Hell, all of us did but we couldn't pull our eyes away from what was about to happen. We all watched as Grace pulled Dr. Aguero aside, held her hand, and whispered something to her. Dr. Aguero fell to her knees with her hands covering her face. Her heart-wrenching sob caused us all to inhale quickly. We watched Grace wrap her arms around the petite doctor and escort her from the waiting room. The only words we heard Dr. Aguero mutter over and over again were that she had to call Luke's fiancé.

"Luke was engaged?" Christian asked sadly.

"I knew he was dating someone but I wasn't aware how serious it was," I replied rubbing my hands over my face. "He kept his private life just that – private."

"_Respiratory therapy to the ER stat! Respiratory therapy to the ER stat! Incoming unit with first responders arriving – ETA 2 minutes!"_

The chaos at the hospital continued as more ambulances began arriving. Granted it was controlled chaos, but chaos nonetheless. Ryan walks off the second ambulance of his own free will with an oxygen mask over his face, while he held a small oxygen tank. He looked like hell as he was led back to into the actual ER. Ryan could be many things – pompous, arrogant, and at times a jerk, but one word I would never use to describe him would be defeated, yet right now, he was.

My thoughts were interrupted by the angry voice of Dr. Aguero as walked through the ER doors and back into the waiting room followed by Grace.

"I have a job to do Grace. I can't do anything for Luke now, but he'd want me to help take care of these people," Dr. Aguero snapped as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "Now let me do what I was put on this earth to do. It's better than sitting and sobbing in a corner somewhere. Besides, Luke's fiancé is meeting me here. She's on her way. I need to remain calm for her. It's what he'd want."

She didn't give Grace the opportunity to answer and went back to treating patients in the waiting room. Grace immediately returns to the ER, taking Elliot with her. Christian, Carrick and I continue sitting where we were, completely numb until I saw Ana's assistant Hannah enter the ER. I hadn't realized she was quite pregnant. It's rare that I get to Gray Publishing – Luke covers it. And it hits me as Dr. Aguero runs over to Hannah the moment she sees her – Luke's fiancé is Hannah. He was going to be a father. People say life is unfair. Fuck that, sometimes life just plain sucks.

We watch as Dr. Aguero says something to Hannah, who sways before Dr. Aguero steadies her. They hug each other tightly. A moment later Hannah begins to hyperventilate followed by her water breaking.

"I need a wheelchair – stat!" Dr. Aguero yells to anyone who will hear her.

I find the nearest wheelchair and head over there. Even with only one functioning hand, I have to do something.

"Taylor," Hannah cries as she's doubled over in pain. "What was he doing there? Why?"

"We're trying to find that out," I inform them. "Right now just focus on delivering your baby. It's what he would want. I promise I'll be by your side the entire time."

A moment later Dr. Aguero was pushing Hannah toward Labor & Delivery. Me, I found a private area and called my Gail. I needed to hear her voice. I hadn't felt this shell-shocked since being on a tour of duty overseas and that dreaded airplane ride where we were being shot at. I'm not ashamed to say it – I feel completely wrecked.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

_She looks so peaceful lying there_, I thought to myself as I kissed her forehead. _My beautiful wife, blonde hair spread out over the hospital issued pillow, looks beautiful. There's not a mark on her other than a bump on her thick head._

I can't help but sigh as I sit in a chair at her bedside. I hold her perfectly manicured hand. If I could, I would handcuff myself to her so she's never out of my sight again. My headstrong, reporter wife, makes Lois Lane appear downright docile. What I wouldn't give to see her green eyes open, even if she were pissed off at me and glaring at me. It would still be better than her eyes being closed. I'm lucky. I know it. My wife is like a cockroach – she can survive anything. At least that is what Ethan says about his little sister. What I wouldn't give to see her go head-to-head with my brother again right now. They are the two most thick-headed, stubborn people I know. While I want to cringe every time they have a knock-down drag-out argument, I also find it funny, but I know if I laugh they will team up and bust my balls. Heck, there are better things my balls can be used for. Yeah, I glanced at my wife again with that thought – sue me, I'm a happily married man.

Kate is like a bloodhound – once she gets wind of a story, she just can't let it go. I begged her to let this one go when she started. It was hitting too close to home – GEH vs. KMA, my construction business building not just KMA headquarters, but all of the facilities on Luke's new properties, along with the renovated office space on the top four floors of her father's media building. The NDA I signed for Luke's build was very specific. I did everything I could to keep Kate away from the facility plans a year ago, yet, I married a reporter. Let me rephrase that – a damned good, ridiculously tenacious reporter. I should have known she would be nosey. I knew Luke's company was more than what it outwardly looked like. I didn't know particulars and frankly, I didn't care – yet my wife naturally did, and so her digging began. Forget the shovel, when my Katie dug, she used a backhoe loader.

Kate and Ana thought of Luke Sawyer as yet another big brother. He was different from Christian's other security guys – even Taylor. Even after he left GEH, Kate and I kept in touch with him. It started out as him and I over business meetings, then it was dinners and Kate joined us. She's like whirlwind – she works multiple stories from different angles. If there is a common thread, she will find it and I can't help but feel she found something big this time.

From what Christian told me, she found something today and it almost got her killed. Hell, it got a dozen people killed, and dozens more injured. Now I know exactly how Christian feels about Ana – he has to keep her safe. I need to do this for Kate, but apparently whatever this is she's gotten herself mixed up in is bigger than anything we've ever seen. _I've got to protect my wife and daughter._

My thoughts are interrupted by a knock on the door. I tell them to come in. I turn to see Jose Rodriguez standing in the doorway. His head is bandaged and his arm is in a sling. I knew he was shot saving Kate. He looks better than I thought he would. I get up and shake his hand. "Thank you for getting Kate out of there."

He smiles gently at me. "This is what family does for one and other."

"You look a bit loopy. Have a seat." He does. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore," he replies as he stares at Kate with concern. "Has she woken up yet? I don't know what those assholes drugged her with, but she went out in a split second."

"What were you doing there?" I couldn't help myself. I had to ask.

"Luke and I were at a brunch meeting across the street when we saw Kate arrive at the office. We thought it was odd that she was there on a Sunday afternoon; and then a bunch of guys followed her in. We felt like something was wrong," he explained. "So we followed them in and all hell broke loose. Did Luke get out okay? He was in bad shape when he found us. He got us out of there."

_Fuck! He doesn't know and they are in business together, _ I thought to myself. "From what I understand he didn't make it after the second blast went off."

I watched as Jose slumped in his chair. I knew over the past few years he'd developed a good friendship with Sawyer that evolved into a profitable business partnership. His color was off from his injuries but this news drained the little color he had left.

"I need to find Abby, Javi and Luke's fiancé," Jose stated flatly as he gets to his feet. Between the medication, his injuries and the news, he swayed slightly when he stood up.

"Abby knows. She called Hannah, who isn't handling this well. She went into labor and is on the L&D pending delivery."

"Luke's little boy is going to grow up without his father," Jose sighs sadly. "Let me know how Kate is when she wakes up. I'm going to watch over Abby and Hannah."

Once Jose leaves all I can do is hold Kate's hand and wait. All I want to do is hold my wife and daughter in my arms and never let them go. Now I know how Christian felt after Hyde's attack on Ana. _Feeling fucking helpless sucks!_

If I had to sit here for days waiting, I'd go insane. I'm turning into my little brother as I repeatedly run my fingers through my hair in an attempt to relieve stress. I could have lost my wife today. The only woman I've ever really loved. Kate Kavanagh – reformer of Seattle's most notorious man whore – okay and Portland's too. I haven't looked at another woman since I laid eyes on her in Portland. Now Kate and her mini-me, my little Ava are my life. If you'd told me a few years ago I'd be a family man, I would have laughed in your face, then fucked all of your sisters and maybe your mom if she was hot just to prove you wrong. Now… well now, I worship my wife.

My thoughts are interrupted when the door opens and Christian, my dad, Taylor, and Welch enter. Welch has a laptop at the ready.

"We've got the security footage," Welch informs us as he sets the laptop down onto the tray table. "Thankfully it's stored both on and off-site plus we have some sound."

Welch presses play and we watch as Kate enters her penthouse office and immediately turns on her smart board. She tosses her jacket onto a chair, and then sits on the edge of her desk as she waits for the board to power up. With a swipe of her fingers two circles appear at the center of the smart board screen – one GEH, the other KMA. A moment later, she taps the screen a few times and a picture comes up on the board along with a timeline for Tina Mubarek's life. They watch as she stares at it briefly, then steps back never taking her eyes from the screen.

After a few seconds, she tilts her head back and closes her eyes. This is how my Kate organizes all the data in her head, by imagining it as a new universe and she's the black hole in the middle that sucks in the data as she processes each bit. She opens her eyes with a smirk on her face and turns to open a safe hidden behind a portrait. From it she pulls out a thumb drive and plugs it into the smart board. With a few taps of her fingers, the screen splits in two and Luke Sawyer's name appears on the bottom portion of the screen. Another tap and Kate grabs her phone and dials Christian and a second later they hear her gleefully yell "I got it. I found the link." Immediately she's grabbed from behind by a mountain of a man wearing a suit. They watch as he covers her mouth with a rag, before injecting her in the neck with a syringe. "Let go!" she screamed before losing consciousness and is roughly tossed to the floor.

"Sorry Grey, you're collateral damage now. Say good-bye to your friends. Leave her here, this building is going to blow in five minutes," one of the men says.

"Fucking bastards!" I snap bitterly and my brother, who never could handle being touched, what does he do? He puts his hand on my shoulder. _That's my baby bro!_

They watch as the man begins downloading information from the smart board onto the thumb drive then puts it in his pocket. He glances at his phone, mumbles under his breath and turns to leave as the first shots are heard in the background. He turns to leave the room.

The view changes to another area in the penthouse – the main reception area. Four men are in the room, armed and appear to be standing guard. The timestamp indicates this is the view of this room while Kate's attack is taking place.

"Guns down gentleman," we hear Luke's calm voice.

"Well if it isn't the cast away," the tallest man replies with contempt. "You went rogue and were thrown out – a disgrace to the agency. Everyone knows it. You're on our watch list now, right up there with Al-Qaeda leaders and other terrorists. We're just waiting for you to fuck up Sawyer. Whoever nails you gets a promotion. If we bring you in dead, we go up two levels – fucking traitor."

We are surprised to hear Luke laugh. "I'm ready to die and take as many as you assholes with me. I'm at peace with my fate – are you at peace with yours?"

"Fuck you Sawyer – fucking holier than thou asshole," one of the guys replies bitterly. "You could have had it all – fucking prodigy. What do you do? You sell what's left of your soul for the other team."

Again, we hear Luke laugh. "All I want is Kavanagh. You give me her and I'll let you get out alive. Given who her father is, she's worth money to me alive – Not to mention the Grey family."

"You always were a pompous ass Sawyer. So what does a trust fund kid need more money for? Forget I asked that," another of the guys laughed. "This place is going to blow, so unless we all move now, we're going to be dead in a few minutes."

"If you want out, you'll have to get through me first. Death is the next big adventure and I'd love to send you on your way," Luke replies. "Don't forget your sunblock and marshmallows because the ride you'll be taking is down, not up."

"Five loyal agents against one traitor," the guy that knocked Kate out informs him as he enters the room. "Your odds don't look so good."

"Well, well," Luke laughs. "Hello Crowley – fucking idiot. I look forward to putting a bullet into your head."

"Why did you do it Luke?" Crowley asked taking a step forward. "They said you'd be running the place, yet you went rogue. Who's lining your pockets?"

"If you did your homework, which clearly you don't, you'd know I don't need the money. I like a challenge. I do what I think is right, regardless of what others might believe is right," Luke replies. "Being worth nearly a billion dollars and having an IQ over 170 will do that to a person. I made my choices and am ready to live with the consequences of those choices. If you eviscerate the lynchpin, can you live with the consequences and sleep at night? Or do you not have a conscience?"

"Your ex wants to be the one to put the bullet in that thick head of yours. She's the one pushing for a kill order on you," Crowley taunts.

"She's too much of a daddy's girl to do it herself. Have her text me a time and place so she can take her best shot," Luke replies with a smirk. "Oh yeah, that's right, she doesn't get blood on her hands."

"We have just over two minutes until this place blows Luke. Quit stalling," Crowley orders, though some of the confidence is out of his voice. "Clear out or we'll clear you out. The odds aren't in your favor."

The sound of a door closing behind the men makes some of them turn. We watch as Sawyer makes his move and with six quick shots, four of the men are dead from bullet wounds to the head and Crowley is on the ground with a bullet to the leg. Luke is also on the ground with at least one bullet in the shoulder.

We watch as both Luke and Crowley attempt to get to their feet, each with a gun in hand and both clearly in pain. "Just over one minute asshole," Luke reminds him with a pain-filled smirk. "Are you ready to meet your maker? I am."

"Fuc-

Crowley's swear is interrupted by a shot from Luke's gun, right in the head. His body falls to the ground with a thud. Luke steps over him and heads into another room without so much as a glance at the body.

Again we watch as the camera view changes. They watch as Luke stumbles into the elder Kavanagh's office; his left shoulder bleeding profusely. He pushes a button on an intercom mounted to the wall. "Jose – do you have Kate in there?"

"Got her," came the reply. "Is it clear?"

"Just hit the down button and get her and yourself the fuck out of here. The safe room will take you down a few levels. There are only enough explosives to take out a few floors and there are still gunmen in the building."

"But you need to be in here with us," Jose's pleading response came though the speaker.

"Hit the down button or so help me if that door opens I'll put a bullet in your fucking head. You're running out of time. Trust me I'll get out of here."

"Be careful."

With that we heard the shrill of a mechanical device and Luke relaxed as he allowed himself to sink to the ground. "Sorry Abby," he muttered looking around the room. A moment later, he smiles and states, "Kavanagh you paranoid asshole. If I get out of here I'll bow to your fat, pompous ass."

We watched as Luke slowly made his way toward a book case. As he got to his feet, he pulled on book after book until one triggered the book case to open, revealing a stair case. Just as Luke was about to take the first step, the first explosion sounds knocking him against the wall and the security camera goes dead.

"What the hell did they mean by the lynchpin?" I asked unable to pull his eyes from my wife's unconscious form.

"Lynchpin theory is basically finding the one event that would trigger a series of other events that would give you an outcome you desire," Welch informs him. "It sounds simple, but there are intelligence think tanks in this and other countries dedicated to just that - to find and protect the potential lynchpins to prevent wars and other political catastrophes. Sometimes it's a matter of triggering a lynchpin to get what your government desires. It actually gets quite complex."

"So rather than Luke trying to protect the lynchpin, could he have been trying to trigger it or maybe protect it?" I asked in disbelief.

"Depends on the desired outcome of triggering or not triggering this lynchpin," Taylor explained as Ryan entered the room. "Based on the conversation that took place, he disagreed with his agency and went rogue."

"He didn't just go rogue," Ryan offered. "A friend at the bureau did some checking for me, he took his entire African intelligence network with him. They completely turned against his agency and shut them out. Luke built the network and spent well over a decade nurturing it. The network chose its side and they chose with Luke. All the major agencies have been watching Luke like a hawk for over a year. They are worried he'll head to Africa and slowly start civil wars that won't be beneficial to the best interest of our country. What the FBI finds amazing is with all these different agencies keeping him under surveillance, they can't find any evidence of wrong doing, so they can't touch him. From what I hear, he's covering his tracks well and driving them crazy along the way – it's almost like he's taunting them. He also has some supporters at different agencies so the FBI, CIA, and NSA are for the most part sitting back and watching it play out. You see, the mainstream agencies don't work well with the elite agencies, so they don't mind seeing one of the elite's fail."

"Why would the CIA or FBI want to harm my wife?" I ask. "I mean really, she's a reporter at a city newspaper, not an agent."

"The guys that were pulled out before the secondary blast had CIA IDs on them, but they weren't CIA," Ryan informed us. "Kate must have stumbled upon something or they knew she was close to finding something. Luke's former agency is the elite of the elite special black ops forces in this country – perhaps the world. They play by their own rules – not our laws. Hell, his agency doesn't even have a real code name. They don't appear in any federal budget documents. You can't apply to work there – you're covertly recruited. Luke was recruited as a teenager due to his IQ and the way his mind works. They made sure he got all the education and training he wanted or needed. When you have a ridiculously high IQ, it generally comes with some manner of social impairment – now imagine rain man but with a normal personality and a higher IQ – that's why Sawyer was recruited. His code name allegedly was _anomaly_."

"What have we found out about KMA? Anything new? Can they be tied to this agency?" Christian asked. "I mean, it would explain why we couldn't find the source of Mubarek's funding."

None of us missed the fact that both Welch and Taylor looked nervous. "What?" I asked unable to keep the irritation from my voice. I'm just too fucking tired at this point. I just want my wife and my quiet life back.

Welch and Taylor looked at each other, but it was Taylor who broke the uncomfortable silence. "If that's the case, then that would somehow make GEH or one of its subsidiaries the potential lynchpin or at least a piece of the puzzle."

"It would validate that the entire reason Sawyer took the job at GEH, so he could determine if whatever they were looking at was in fact a true lynchpin," Welch informed them. "It would mean, Luke Sawyer played me and I vouched for him."

"We vouched for him," Taylor corrected his friend.

"This is so fucked up," I muttered. "We need to sleep on it and reconvene on it tomorrow." Yes I was dismissing them. It's after midnight and I just wanted to turn my brain off, hold my wife's hand, and wait for those precious green eyes to glare at me because I'm being over-protective.

Leave it to dad to get to his feet first and announce he was taking Taylor to radiology to get a few x-rays and then have his hand set. Ryan offers to take Christian home, and then return for Taylor.

"Welch, can you take a look at my place and enhance security?" I ask. "Also, hire a team for us. I don't want to take a chance with my family."

"Will do," he replies before he leaves.

I feel Christian place his hand on my shoulder. I know he knows what I'm going through, but I just don't want to hear it. All I want is to hear my wife beg me to take her shopping or bitch about something. "What Christian?" I finally ask exasperated.

"When Kate is discharged, please come and stay with us on the Sound. Move in with us until this blows over or at the very least until you get your security squared away."

"We'll seriously consider it. Just let me see what Welch says tomorrow."


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

How is it that a lawyer, who has never been in the active military, can make me, a former Special Forces guy, feel like a kid? How? My hand aches. I mean clearly – it's broken in at least one spot. My fingers look like sausages about to burst their casings. As much as I try not so show that it hurts like all fucking hell, the senior Mr. Grey just smirks at me almost knowingly. Yes, I feel like a foolish child.

"Just say it Mr. Grey," I mutter in embarrassment.

"It's just us Taylor. Enough with Christian's formality for today. It's been an extremely long, draining day," he replied. "Call me Carrick."

By the uncertain look on my face, I know he is aware of my hesitance. And what does the bastard do, he gives a look that tells my sorry ass to sit down. I do. _What the fuck!_

He sits next to me outside of radiology and says, "It was a wall for me."

I don't follow. I just glance at him, hoping he will elaborate further. He does with a flush to his cheeks.

"For you it was a USPS mailbox – a federal crime by the way," he laughs at me. "For me, it was a wall. If I'm to be honest, a cement wall."

He showed me the feint scars on this left hand. "When we were going through the paperwork to adopt Christian, it fell to me to tell Grace that he would have to go to foster care for two or more months until the adoption paperwork was finalized. She was devastated. Even though I was a lawyer, I knew it had to be that way, but the combination of seeing my wife crying her eyes out when she was separated from Christian, to my own anger over the situation, I just exploded. Thankfully it was a hospital cement wall, so treatment was close."

I wanted to say _thanks for letting me know I'm not the only testosterone infused idiot_, but he's my boss's father, so I can't. "Must be a guy thing" is all I can managed to say before the radiology technician calls me in for the x-ray.

It doesn't take long to find out I broke three bones in my hand and my middle finger. Nice, now I can flip people off while my finger is splinted and not get told off. I'm definitely going to use that to my advantage over the course of the next few weeks. Mr. Grey and I laugh over that.

"Well Taylor, looks like you did it right," Carrick smirks. "I'm jealous. I could use that finger in the courtroom."

"They are sending me to have it cast. You don't have to wait around. I've already texted Ryan that I'm sticking around here for the night to keep an eye on Kate," I inform him. "And he's agreed to come get me once she's discharged."

We both get to our feet when we see a patient hooked up to all kinds of machinery and a ventilator being wheeled into the radiology suite, followed by Drs. Grey and Aguero. The patient is barely recognizable as his face is swollen and covered in cuts and bruises, but when I hear Dr. Aguero snap at the radiology technician to be more careful with her brother, both Mr. Grey and I let out the breath we've been holding and mutter – Sawyer. He's alive, but by the look of it, just barely. He's on a ventilator.

"We need a full series on his left leg to make sure the screws are set correctly," Dr. Grey orders, "then we need a pelvic, ribs, right shoulder, cervical, and skull series."

Mr. Grey hugs his wife as she comes from the x-ray suite followed by Dr. Aguero. Both women are clearly exhausted, but Dr. Aguero's face is running the full gamut of emotions – sorrow, fear, dread, and oddly, happiness.

"How is he?" I have to ask them.

"Critical," Dr. Aguero replies sadly. "His left leg was broken in three places. His right arm in two. He's got a hairline fracture of the pelvis along with most of his ribs being either bruised, cracked or broken. He's spent eight hours in surgery for his gunshot wounds and getting pins placed in his leg and arm. His skull was fractured in the explosion. He shouldn't be alive, but he is and through all this, he might die not knowing he became a father to a beautiful baby boy an hour ago." She finished with a sob as she fell to her knees and the pent up emotions just poured out of her.

I'd only met her once and she appeared to be a perky, upbeat, secure, intelligent, kind individual. Right now the events of the day were like a category five hurricane and she'd spent the day in the eye of the storm and was starting to feel the back end of the storm. Her work and the birth of Luke's son kept her focused and distracted, but now that the chaos has died down, she couldn't choke down the feelings. When I met her Saturday night she looked all of sixteen, but after hearing her speak at the fund-raiser, it was clear she was wise beyond her years and focused. Now, she looked like a lost ten year old who'd lost everything. Now I know what Luke went home to when he left Stuttgart. I could tell by the look on the Grey's faces, they felt it too – an overwhelming need to protect her.

Mr. Grey and I help Dr. Aguero into a chair, as Dr. Grey heads into a nearby office and returns with a box of tissues.

"Dr. Aguero," I start but she interrupts me.

"It's Abby, Taylor."

"Abby," I agree "and it's Jason." She nods. "What can we do to help? From what I understand the authorities are still trying to piece together what exactly happened today and it would make me feel infinitely better if until the investigation is over, you'd allow my team to provide a security detail for you."

She laughs as she wipes the tears from her eyes. "You sound like Luke – security, security, security. I'm nobody. I don't need security."

"I beg to differ," Mr. Grey continues. "First – you're an extremely wealthy nobody as you put it; and second, whatever was the driver of today's explosion, your brother was at ground zero of the event. If he were awake right now, he would want you protected."

She eyes meet Mr. Grey and mine suspiciously. "From what I understand Luke and his business partner, Jose Rodriguez were having a lunch meeting across the street when they saw Kate being followed into the building. They were caught up in this when they went in to help her. If anyone requires security it's Kate Grey."

"It's already been taken care of," Dr. Grey informs her, but gazes as us questioningly.

We know Dr. Grey has been extremely busy with the victims, so the opportunity hasn't presented itself for us to bring her up to date on the situation.

I sigh and squat down before Abby. "I need you to trust me on this. Let my team watch over you and Luke until he's conscious and we can be reassured that the security measures aren't necessary. We also want to put a team on Jose, Javi, Hannah and the baby just in case."

"What is it you aren't telling me Jason?"

She had to fucking ask that question. Sometimes I hate smart women. "My team has been investigating today's incident and one of them has a connection at the FBI. We're not sure how just yet, but we can't help but feel that whatever Kate stumbled upon had to do with Luke. We could be wrong, but I'd rather err on the side of caution. I know Luke would want you and the people he cares about protected."

Clearly, she's overwhelmed by the limited information I provided. Her head is now resting in her hands and she's rubbing her temples. Her thoughts are interrupted by her cell phone ringing to the beat of African drums. "Rami," she sighs emotionally. "Are you here yet?" After a brief pause she informs him of her location in radiology.

When Abby glances up at me apologetically, I knew she was going to take a pass on our security offering. "Luke was always obsessed with my security," she informed us. "If anything ever happened to him, a protocol would be triggered and Rami would show up."

We turned when the elevator pinged and out walked an African giant of a man in an expensive suit. I'm six-three, Luke's six-five, pushing six-six, this guy had to be about six-nine or more and all muscle. Oddly, he's carrying a dark, ornately carved walking stick, which he really doesn't need._ Just fucking odd. _His skin darker than any I'd seen on a person from Africa. His dark eyes glared at each of us standing around Abby and even I felt a chill of fear run through me. This guy was intimidating as all fuck until his eyes met Abby's, then he smiled as he pulled her into an embrace before introducing us to him.

"All will be as it should be," he whispered to her with a thick accent that if I didn't know better sounded more like a Saudi accent than anything else. "It's in fates hands at this point. Protocol one has been activated. Your family properties and business are now protected by my team. Mr. Rodriguez, Javi, Hannah and the baby will be safe. I have secured the permission of the hospital administration to place a two-man guard on Luke during his stay here."

"Thank you Rami," Abby replied as the elevator pinged again and out stepped three more impeccably dressed, tall, dark, African men who merely stood in formation awaiting their orders. The shortest one had to be six-foot-five. An army of fucking giants.

Well, I thought there were three, but from behind one of them stepped a short, African male, no more than five-foot-six, dressed in jeans, a Seattle Sounders soccer jersey, and Air Jordan's who passed a tablet to Rami. Any trace of kindness left his face, replaced by a hatred that caused Abby, the Grey's and I stiffen in shock.

"Manu," Rami ordered, "please secure a time for an impromptu meeting for me with our adversary, and another with their puppet master."

"Yes sir," the younger man replied before he disappeared back into the elevator.

"What the hell is going on Rami?" Abby asked.

He merely shook his head at her slightly, indicating this wasn't the place for the conversation. She was too upset to catch it, for which I was grateful, so she kept pushing him.

"You are aware Luke keeps his African business private," he informs her. "I cannot violate almost twenty years of his confidence. So how is my blood brother?"

As Abby fills him in, Dr. & Mr. Grey excuse themselves. I can't resist remaining, hoping to find another piece of the puzzle. I have to admit, he's good. He's not giving away anything. I can't help but wonder how much Abby knows about Luke's true occupation. She doesn't appear to know much, but she's bright, so I imagine she's not completely clueless.

"Jason," Abby waves her hand in front of my face pulling me from my thoughts. "Would you like me to set your hand and finger? Grace sent me a text that you still need treatment from yesterday. It will be nearly an hour before Luke heads back to the ICU."

I nod as she leads me down the hallway. Rami and one CPO follow us, leaving the two of the three CPOs behind to watch over Luke as his x-rays continue. We enter a treatment room and she motions for me to sit on a chair next to a treatment table.

"Be right back," she informs us. "I'm going to get the orthopedic cart, ice packs, and some pain relievers. I can't believe you've sat like this for over twelve hours."

I look up at the clock on the wall as she exits, followed by the CPO. I can't believe it's almost four am.

"So Taylor," Rami addresses me. "You are the head of security for Mr. Grey?"

I nod.

"You need to increase your security on the entire Grey family," he informs me. Like I don't fucking already know that. "This was just the first strike. Luke's instructions to me were clear – if you require any additional security support, I was to offer our services."

Yes, I tend to be quite taciturn, like Ana's father. It's why Ana and I get along so well. I'm just a younger, taller version of her step-father. But fuck it this time. "What the fuck is going on? I mean, we heard and saw the surveillance video from immediately before the first explosion and through the second explosion. I knew Luke wasn't just a regular guy, doing regular business. I knew that almost two decades ago when I first met him. The FBI is saying he went rogue, but I know there has to be more to it. I know and trust Luke."

It's a sight to behold when this enormous, clearly dangerous man smiles. His eyes squint with a sense of mirth and all sense of danger dissipates.

"The details are not mine to share," he replies. "For the record, Luke trusts you like a brother, therefore, I do as well. What we both will be dealing with is pure evil, in my opinion. You must focus on protecting Ana Grey and her children, along with GEH. Collateral damage is their way and their intentions are to destabilize Mr. Grey and his most vulnerable points are his family. They will bring GEH to its proverbial knees in any way possible. For now, they have been attempting to undermine GEH financially. With Luke out of the mix, they will up their game. Luke has been able to stop most of it, but when you are dealing with an organization with bottomless pockets, at times it will be impossible. I advise you to sweep every property – both business and professional."

He hands me a business card, then continues. "Call the number on this card and give them your name. They will arrange to provide you with the latest bug sweeping technology. I recommend it gets utilized daily." His massive hand reaches into his pocket and pulls out what looks like a cell phone and he hands it to me. It's not a cell phone like I've ever seen. "I'm sure you will find the listening quite informative over time. I won't say more about that."

"Informative, huh?" I smile.

"Quite. I'm sure both you and Mr. Grey will find it difficult to turn off. Like a season of the television program 24 on Netflix."

"Anything else I should know?"

"Ground the helicopter and company airplanes effective immediately. Trust no one and nothing. Above all, ditch your new CPO Heller. He's an operative. I also took the liberty of reaching out to Elliot Grey to offer our specialized security services. He's accepted on the condition that the security of his family is coordinated with your team. I agreed if you agree."

Part of me just wants to ask him which side is Luke really on – good or bad. I won't ask, because I know in the spy game, good or bad are too simple – it's just a different shade of grey. Perspective and morals dictate good and evil. Trust no one, Rami told me. So I won't trust him either. At least not just yet.

"By the emotions crossing your face Taylor," Rami laughed. "I see you understand the business. There is no black and white."

An hour later, my hand and finger are cast and/or set, I've texted Mr. Grey, Welch, Gail, and the security team that Luke is in fact alive, but critical. I know it was five am when I sent the text, but I wanted that message known before we inadvertently spread his false demise as we did with Jose Rodriguez.

There is nothing worse than shitty hospital coffee. Being physically tired is one thing, but add to it emotionally and mentally and I have to admit, I feel like something the cat refused to drag in. Let's not forget the pain killers Abby made me take before she set my hand. I don't feel like I could pass a field sobriety test. Part of me just wants to put a pillow over my head and give into exhaustion, but I know how I function – there's no way I'll be able to turn my brain off. Now I understand how Kate Grey's brain was attempting to put the pieces together in front of her smart board. There are just too many moving parts and data points. I know two things at this point:

Number 1: my boss is somehow connected to the lynchpin. Either something he or his company is doing is the actual lynchpin, or he is responsible for one of the events after the lynchpin is triggered. It's like trying to watch the big bang theory play out. He is either the first atom releasing energy or a subsequent event in the time line.

And Number 2: this concerns Mr. Grey's and GEH's interest in Africa.

The media have gone into over-drive attempting to figure out the pieces of the puzzle. Good luck with that asshole reporter. This is way above my pay grade, so it sure as shit is well above theirs. All I know is Kate Grey regained consciousness last night and she was given the all clear to go home today. Oddly enough, she claims to not remember what happened all day yesterday. I'm just not buying it but I'll play along for now.

I knock on the door to her private room after nodding at Reynolds standing guard along with yet another massive African gentleman. Elliot invites me into the room, but his wife mysteriously isn't there.

"Good morning Mr. Grey," I begin as Mrs. Grey comes from the en-suite. I wish her good morning as well. She looks a bit disoriented and hung over. "I thought since you were officially being discharged today that we'd do it before the press arrived and staked out the hospital. They don't anticipate your departure until after morning rounds, so if we do it now, we can still do it under the cloak of darkness."

"Agreed," they reply together.

"Ten minutes then?"

They both nod. I leave the room and turn to Reynolds. "Ryan will be out back in ten minutes. We're getting them the heck out of here and to the house on the Sound before the sun rises. I'm going to head up to the ICU and check on Luke before we go."

As I head to the ICU I let my mind drift back to Kate and Elliot. Clearly, they both know more than they are letting on. Grey Construction has been doing all the construction work on not only Luke's company facilities for the past two years, _yeah, I checked,_ but also on all of the residential and business facilities associated with Luke, Abby, and Javi. I imagine the builds came with NDA's for him to sign, but Kate being Kate, couldn't help but be curious. _Fucking Kate!_

Naturally, I had Welch run a background check on Javi. Orphaned at twelve in Baltimore, he went into the system. A smart kid, who befriended Abby when he prevented her from being mugged. He was never in any trouble. Just a kid whose parents died and had no living relatives. Within six months of meeting Abby, Luke became his legal guardian and Javi had been with them ever since. Now in his mid-twenties, he is a partner in the restaurants and nightclubs with Abby and Luke.

Rami wasn't kidding when he said he'd have Luke guarded. There were two CPOs in the ICU watching over Luke. I gave them a nod before stepping bedside. To say it pained me to see him like that was an understatement. Out of all of GEH CPOs, he was the one who was less military-like in their demeanor, yet he was the first one I'd want covering my back. Just looking at him now and glancing at the equipment keeping him alive, I couldn't help but wonder if he really would survive this. I owe him for Afghanistan. It was my mantra – I owe him; yet I knew if I didn't put my fucking emotions aside and became a soldier again that I would be useless to him. My emotions sided with Luke one hundred percent. My logical mind, however, were sixty/forty with Luke being the sixty on the good side.

"Keep up the good fight Luke," I mumbled before heading toward the door.

In under two hours I had the Elliot Grey's settled at the house on the Sound. Afterwards, I took a quick shower, kissed my girl, called the guy about the bug-detector, and was heading out to pick it up. It was going to be a very long day running on no sleep and running the scans over all of Grey House and SIP with Welch.

By the time we finished scanning the entire building, we were crushed. Our state of the art security system was nothing compared to what we were up against. I dreaded briefing Mr. Grey of the breaches at Grey House and SIP. It was nine in the evening when we convened in Mr. Grey's office and he could tell by the looks on our faces the news wasn't good.

When he started to ask his first question, I held up a sign that said: _'Not a word on business – all causal until we scan the room.' _It took us all of fifteen minutes to pull almost a dozen listening devices just from the office. It was astounding – his personal phone, his cell phone, his desk, around any place where there was seating. It was worse than we could have possibly imagined. I knew in my gut the rest of the house was wired similarly. My thoughts went to the Escala apartment. I was thankful that Mr. Grey removed the playroom nearly two years ago. That would have provided blackmail material that would have ended him. It's this fact that changes that sixty/forty spread on Luke good/bad to eighty/twenty, because Luke knew everything about Mr. Grey's extracurricular activities and clearly didn't report it back to the higher ups. If he had, they could have easily crushed Mr. Grey by now. It would have been easy. Hell, Luke was the one in charge of dismantling the room and rather than contract it out, he did it himself over the course of a weekend to protect Christian Grey's privacy. Make that ninety/ten.

I grabbed a pen from my pocket and on the back of the paper I was holding, I wrote: _we must convene to the Q7 and off the property where it's secure. Until every centimeter of this property is searched it's not safe to talk aloud._

Mr. Grey nodded before writing a note to Ana on a piece of paper explaining we were going out. He left it on her pillow while she tended to the kids baths. Once we were off the property in the Q7 I pulled over to a wooded area, turned off the car and Welch and I moved to the back seat with Mr. Grey.

"How bad is it?" he asked immediately.

Welch and I glanced at each other, each willing the other to break the bad news. In the end, I merely said, "_we're fucked_."

"That bad?" Mr. Grey asked as his anxiety level was increasing by the second. I nodded. "We've spent millions on security and you're telling me we bought top of the line equipment and it's not worth shit?"

"Up against anyone other than a small portion of the government, we were protected. This is so far over our heads it's unbelievable," Welch stated.

"If it weren't for Rami, Luke's security head, we never would have known," I explained. "He provided the tool to find the listening devices. He believes they are trying to bring you to your knees at GEH and attempting to distract you personally. He advised us to put maximum security around Ana and the children because that is what will leave you most vulnerable. He said that the people doing this don't give a damn about collateral damage. He also told me Heller is a spy and we need to ditch him."

"Fuck!" Mr. Grey ran both hands through his hair. "How's Luke?"

"He's on a ventilator and he's a mess. He shouldn't be alive."

"People say I'm stubborn but the reality is my wife is more stubborn than I am," Mr. Grey smirked. "After the Hyde incident, where Ana ditched Sawyer, he was on her like glue until the end of his employment. He's more stubborn than the two of us put together. Yet even though he was stubborn with her, he made her laugh even when she was angry at him. He's too stubborn to allow someone else to win."

"I hope you are right," Welch commented.

"Here's what I want," Mr. Grey ordered. "First – get burner phones for all of our security household staff, all members of the Grey family, Ros and her family, my legal team at GEH, both Ana and our PA's, and Ray Steele. Re-run background checks on all security staff, household staff, and management and above at both GEH and SIP. This should include any management assistants. Once this is done, we're going to hold an impromptu summit that includes: Elliott and Kate, my father, Ros, and Andrea. This needs to take place outside of Seattle and only be accessible by motor vehicle. This location must have no connection to anyone in the family. Once we have all the other items set, we'll hold the meeting on two hours advanced notice, and we'll strategically pick people up at different coffee houses along the way. We control the vehicle, the timing, and the location. I want this to happen in the next forty-eight hours. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir," I reply. "One more thing Mr. Grey." I pull the other device from my pocket and hand it to him. "According to Rami, we'll find some interesting listening on this."

With a push of the button on the device we immediately hear voices. Even though we don't know where they are coming from, they are crystal clear.

"_Fucking Rami. I can't believe that asshole arrived less than twelve hours after the explosion," a male voice muttered. "If Sawyer gets off that ventilator, we're screwed. Do you understand me? His contingency plan has kicked in and if he survives, he and Rami will end this on their terms. As I see it we have days to act. I want Sawyer and Rami dead and I want it to happen within twenty-four hours. I don't give a damn who gets hurt in the process, just make it happen. Put word out on the street – a five million dollar bounty on each head."_

"_What about GEH?" another male voice asks._

"_There have long been rumors about Christian Trevelyan-Grey and his unorthodox lifestyle from before he got married. Now when Luke was part of the agency and spying on Grey, he made it clear there was no sign of anything kinky in the Grey closet from day one," the first man muttered "but let's be real, Luke went rogue right before he stopped working for the fucker, so he may have avoided passing on any damaging information. Keep digging. If there is some kinky twisted crap in Grey's closet, then with a little blackmail and the appropriate amount of family pressure, we can bring him to his knees with minimal damage."_

"_The easiest and quickest solution would be to add a third bounty to the list and get Grey's head on a silver platter," a female voice countered. "Then a hostile takeover of GEH – all inclusive, and we're done. Three lives for one goal. It's the least amount of blood shed."_

"_You're being naïve," the first man explained. "Carrick and Elliot Grey wouldn't allow GEH to fail, no matter what happened to Mr. CEO. You know Elliot Grey has built everything here for Sawyer and company. He's already chosen his side, so he won't allow GEH to fail or be taken over."_

"_You're aware that Rami is now in contact with GEH Security Chief Jason Taylor, right?" the female asked. "Well, we lost our inside guy at GEH and the building has been swept clean. Rami is working toward leveling the playing field. We can't afford to have Rami and Taylor collaborating. I say add Taylor's name to the bounty list. Knocking him off will help stem some of the bloodshed. I'll take care of little Doctor Smartypants on my own. Even as a ten-year old, she was fucking annoying. She should have died in that crash along with her parents. That was the intent after all. But no, she survived the crash and then survived cancer. By that time there was no bending Sawyer to our ways."_

"_Bitter are we?" the first male voice asked again. "It was your first failure. I hope you've learned from it, because if you fail me this time, it won't be pleasant."_

"_Have we examined all the data from the Kavanagh smart board?" she asked._

"_She made some connections between you and Sawyer, but she had everything in her files to put it all together," another male voice replied. "Based on that, my recommendation is to make her our first target."_

"_We can't have too much bloodshed over the course of a few weeks without drawing attention to our actions. That's the last thing the government wants – another Ollie North-type fiasco to hit the mainstream press. We'll do this my way," the first male voice commands. "Sawyer's life support should inadvertently fail. Make Rami disappear – permanently. Kate Grey – motor vehicle accident perhaps if she keeps butting her nose in where it doesn't belong? Keep digging on Christian Grey – from his preliminary file, we know there's more to him – so dig – what made him change from a volatile teenager of fifteen, to top of his class without a fight afterward during the remainder of his academic career. Explore all the kink clubs around Seattle and Boston to see if he can be tied back to anything embarrassing. I want surveillance on all of the Grey's, Jose Rodriguez, and Sawyer's family. Let's start there and take it one step at a time. Unless we can take everyone out in one neat plane crash we don't go all in."_

The three of us looked at each other in shock. These people were cavalier about taking lives it was ridiculous. I found it difficult to believe they worked for our government. This couldn't be. Looking around me, Welch looked disgusted and tense; while Mr. Grey was just pale and his eyes darkened in horror.

"What the fuck!" Grey spat. "Triple the guard on Luke and let's work with my mother to immediately hire private duty care for him along with an emergency power generator on his ventilator."

"We need to warn Rami," I added as someone pounded on top of the car. We all jumped in shock. I looked out my window and saw a very dark face, white teeth, and a smirk. I opened the door. "Fuck Rami."

"Nice job of hiding Jason," Rami replied as he reached his hand out to Mr. Grey. "Mr. Grey good to meet you." They shook hands before he turned his attention to Welch. "Mr. Welch, a pleasure."

"How did you find us?" Welch asked.

"I have some of my men keeping an eye out," he replied. "You did the right thing having this conversation here. By the pasty looks on all of your faces, I can tell you just heard what we've heard."

"So Mr. Rami," Mr. Grey began but was interrupted by Rami.

"Just Rami," he corrected the billionaire.

"How do we know with certainty that we should side with you?" Mr. Grey asked.

The large man laughed. "You can follow your gut and you chose; or, you look at the facts, then follow the lynchpin and determine what type of domino effect triggering it would have vs. destroying it and then making your decision from there."

"So in some way, I'm the lynchpin," Mr. Grey asks.

Rami nods and pulls an envelope from the inside pocket of his jacket. "Luke wanted you to have this. All I ask is that you review it in private and away from prying eyes. Quietly purchase a new computer as it's encrypted and currently your GEH computer systems are compromised."

"Was Luke really sent to spy on GEH a few years ago?" Mr. Grey asked.

"I'll cut to the chase Mr. Grey. Yes, Luke was sent to spy on you. He built a file on you that would make your head spin. You see, he was placed with GEH to evaluation the potential of this lynchpin existing, the timeframe where it would become a game changer and how the government could use it to their advantage. He's my blood brother and I watched him work through the best course of action with regard to this lynchpin. In the end, he destroyed your file and never shared it with another soul, not even me, but I did get to watch it burn. He made his choice that day. It's time for you to make yours– regardless of what Luke's choice was. You see, everyone looks at events from different points of view, which means Luke wasn't necessarily right. I believe he was, but that doesn't mean you will. After all, the life of a spy is in the grey and Luke has been living in fifty shades of it since he set foot in Seattle four years ago."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

When Rami left the car, we called it a night and headed home. The dark circles under Taylor's eyes, something I'd never witnessed in the six plus years in my employ, made me call it a night. I know between the three of us, Welch, Taylor, and myself, we'd reached the point of turning our brains off and processing everything with a fresh eye in the morning. As Taylor and I arrived back at the house on the Sound, Taylor immediately began running a security sweep of the house.

I couldn't help but impatiently sigh at him. "Taylor!" I snapped in frustration. "We're calling it a night; that means you included. You're no good to me exhausted."

It was clear Taylor disagreed with my lack of action tonight. Whenever he disagreed with me there was a subtle change in his posture – to almost a dominant-like stance. He stood taller yet some of his military stiffness left him. It felt like a contradiction, but to me the message he conveyed was I'm bigger than you and I'm confident in my assessment of the situation. Taylor, under normal circumstances, had the posture of a soldier. It didn't matter that he was out of the military for years – he still had it. This subtle relaxation of his posture exuded a certain confidence in himself. It was almost a glimpse behind the military exterior. Hell, it reminded me of Sawyer, who always had this posture most of the time but with him it was the military-like stiffness he portrayed to me, yet with Ana he was his true self.

Taylor nodded and left for the night. Me, well I reached for a glass of wine – white and appropriately named – Conundrum. "Ironic," I muttered to myself.

I have to admit, the fact that we now know that Luke Sawyer was originally sent here to spy on GEH and me, leaves me on edge. Other than Taylor, Sawyer knew all of my secrets; yet supposedly he kept them. Why? He had exactly what he needed for his mission, whatever it was, yet he stopped. I could only hope the answer was on the small thumb drive that was in the envelope. Part of me wondered if he kept his silence for Ana.

I couldn't resist glancing at the thumb drive again. I know I couldn't just stick it up my ass and absorb the data. No instant gratification today. I pulled the envelope from my pocket, opened it and removed the thumb drive. I stared at it, willing it to do something. _ Welcome to fantasyland Grey._ _I fucking hate waiting. _It had taken every ounce of self-control I had not to open Ana's little package before we were officially engaged. The memories are vivid, yet horrifying of my Charlie Tango plummeting toward the ground. All I could think about was Ana and the small package in my breast pocket. I didn't want to die not knowing what was in it. We hit the ground so fast, I didn't have a chance to get to open it. Once I realized I survived impact, Ros and I started walking and every few minutes my hand was drawn back to that jacket pocket. Ros thought I was having heart issues or that I'd been injured in the crash – hell no. I just didn't want to admit that I was an impatient infant, in love with his girl and all I wanted to do was open the package. One day I'd explain it to her, just not the day of the crash and not any day since then.

After finishing my wine, I head upstairs to check on Teddy and Ava first. Teddy is fast asleep in his bed, cuddled up clutching his blanket. Little Ava is in Teddy's former crib staring at the stars glowing on the ceiling from the small rounded projector on the bedside small table. When her green eyes met my grey ones, she smiled and gave him a giggle. Ava was a Kate Kavanagh miniature with Elliot's sense of mirth from what I'd seen so far. She rarely cried. Never threw a tantrum and was always laughing. She was like a little blonde Oreo – Kate was the cookie and Elliot the creamy middle. _Thank god for that_, I thought as I couldn't imagine it the other way around.

After changing her diaper, I picked her up, fed her a bottle, burped her, and then we sat on the rocking chair in Teddy's room and I read her a children's book. Once she started yawning, back to the crib she went, and I rubbed her back until she fell asleep. This precious little angel almost lost her mother in the past twenty-four hours. I was thankful she was completely oblivious to that fact. The thought of Ava not having Kate in her life sickens me. Kate and I have had our differences over the past few years and there are still days I wish she were a man so I can knock her on her ass, but the reality is – she's grown on me considerably. At first we were two alpha personalities protecting Ana. Now we were more of a team. Honestly, it felt good.

I wander into Phoebe's bedroom and like Ava, she's wide awake cooing softly. It's two-thirty in the morning, you'd think she'd be asleep. After a quick diaper change and bottle, we settle into her swivel rocker and I read her a book. Unlike Ava, Phoebe doesn't nod off. She continue cooing happily at me, wide awake. I wish I understood what she was trying to tell me. Not only does she look like Ana, but I have no doubt, she'll talk like her as well one day. Even now, she moves one hand while she coos away. My little night-owl. Maybe an herbal bath will help her fall asleep.

We head to the master suite and as quietly as possible, I open the door. The bed is empty. It's the middle of the night, where's my wife? We check the bathroom and the lounge before beginning our search of the entire house. After the day I've had, it would be normal to be worried – not me though, I'm terrified. My family is my Achilles heel and they know it.

I realize I'm not hiding that emotions well enough, as Phoebe begins to fuss. She's feeding off my nervous energy. Immediately I take a few deep, hopefully soothing breaths before softly singing a lullaby to calm her. Who am I kidding, it's to calm myself as well.

Five minutes later we've checked all the extra bedrooms, except Kate and Elliot's, my office, Ana's office, the kitchen, the gym, the library, the TV-game room, and the music room – nothing. No sign of my Ana. No amount of deep breathing will calm me now. I try calling her cell phone. It's ringing in the house – I can hear it. We follow the ringing until the call goes to voicemail, then we dial again and continue following the ringing to the master bedroom. This time we check the closet, the bathroom, and finally the attached second floor patio. And there we find her, lounging with her iPod headset plugged in, soft lights are on, a glass of iced tea by her side, and she's reading yet another manuscript. Normally, she reads the first few chapters and makes a decision. Clearly this one is different as she appears to be a few hundred pages into it and nearing the end. I know when this happens, she's found a best seller.

Now I can breathe easier as I step onto the patio. "That must be one hell of a book," I comment causing her to nearly jump out of her skin.

Her hand is on her chest. I definitely frightened her. She looks pale as she pulls her ear buds out. "Nothing like scaring the heck out of me after too many glasses of iced tea," she replies before getting up, kissing both of us and running toward the bathroom.

I can't help but chuckle. Phoebe follows suit with a giggle. _So fucking adorable!_ Both of my girls are. When Ana returns, she takes Phoebe into her arms and whispers softly to her as she heads toward the nursery. It only takes putting our little one into her crib and a few back rubs to get Phoebe to sleep._ Why can't I do that with Phoebe? It works on Ava. As_ we head back toward the master suite, hand-in-hand, I can't help but ask if she found another best seller.

She smiles. "I believe I have. I started reading this manuscript a few hours ago and I couldn't put it down. It's an adventure novel with intrigue, comedy, and romance thrown in, by a first time author named Brigid Graham from Portland. It's intense, yet amusing and in need of minimal editing. I intend on meeting with her as soon as possible. It's brilliant. The character development is deep, dark, yet utterly relatable."

"What's the working title?"

"_And So The Dominos Fall_. Even the title is brilliant," Ana replies with a grin. "As always, I've sent you Brigid's personal information so you can run the standard background check."

"It makes me feel better to know that you aren't going to meet with a felon."

"Agreed," Ana replies before grabbing her iced tea and manuscript from the patio. "How's Luke?"

"Critical, but alive. It's too soon to know what the outcome will be," I reply somberly. There is one sound I hate more than hearing Ana's fear – it's her sad, sigh. It's a sign that she's going to bottle up what she's feeling. Normally, I would push her, but with the house bugged I can't explain what needs to be explained.

"I'm going to take a quick shower. It's been a long day."

Over the next day and a half things were unexpectedly quiet. There were no incidents at the hospital or attempts on Kate's life. Rami must be good at his job. I pulled Elliot to the shoreline and explained a bit of what is going on. Oddly, he didn't appear all that surprised. It was then I knew that my brother knew more than he was letting on. So what was it about the builds that were so special? I ran the list in my mind as Taylor drove toward Grey House.

The facilities associated with Luke's government contract – details unknown but it was a huge development – over 100,000 square foot facility.

Luke's country home – 8,000 square foot new build. Taylor drove by it and claimed it was a fortress.

Dr. Aguero's rural home and vineyard, next door to Luke's – again over 10,000 square foot build, with a twelve car garage, indoor and outdoor pool, full free-standing winemaking facilities and emergency doctor's office. Both the good doctor and her friend Javi lived there – a couple? Perhaps.

Saguero Trust LLC – 10,000 square feet of office space in downtown Seattle

The Parkway project – filed plans include apartments, doctor's offices, fitness facility, and main floor organic grocer, along with three restaurants and a penthouse luxury apartment.

Dr. Aguero's private practice suite – temporary – 10,000 square foot rental

Luke's & Dr. Aguero's condo – Pike Market District Penthouse – Tower building – 9,000 square foot triplex

And finally, Arenas de Seattle, a nightclub and restaurant due to open in six weeks in Pike Market District co-owned by Dr. Aguero, Luke, and Javi.

No wonder Grey Constructions earnings have been through the roof in the past eighteen months – each was a large project on its own, but together coupled with all the other projects Elliot was involved with explained his absence from some family gatherings lately. For the government projects he must have signed at least one NDA and Luke was smart enough to have him sign others to protect his sister. Luke alone had to have spent upward of five hundred million dollars of the governments money alone, not to mention tens of millions more of his and his sisters funds.

It was going to be a long day. For the first time, I will be meeting with KMA's Tina Mubarek as we make our final bid presentations for the acquisition of small microchip developer in South Korea. Breakfast was at 9 and was akin to a meet and greet. GEH presented at 10 am, and KMA at 11 with presentations held in an office suite downtown. The decision would be made by the end of the day with paperwork signing scheduled at three pm for the winning bidder.

For GEH it was an important purchase not just for assistance with philanthropic projects, but in building the next generation of cellular phones that would be basically unhackable. This acquisition was the single most important acquisition in GEH history. It had to happen.

….

At eight forty-five, we arrived downtown. Taylor, Ryan, Reynolds, Ros, Barney, and two members of our legal department represented GEH. Once inside the building we were issued visitor passes and escorted to the thirtieth floor and led to a large lounge. Ryan and Reynolds stood outside the door, while Taylor discreetly positioned himself in the conference room. While we served ourselves coffee, we waited patiently for the KMA team. When they arrived, they didn't disappoint.

Tina Mubarek was thirty-eight but appeared to be in her mid-twenties. Tall, thin, very attractive with black hair and hazel eyes. Kate had described her to me as a bitch on wheels, yet though she had fashion model height, looks, and grace, she was one of those people rare people that exuded goodness. Could Kate have been wrong about this woman? I pride myself in being able to read people – it's what has made me successful. Kate does as well; it's what makes her an excellent journalist.

Mubarek is joined by one individual and if our search is correct, it's her second in command, Ibra Wek. We know little of Wek – age thirty-three, first generation U.S. citizen, born in Reston Virginia to a Sudanese father and South African mother; MBA from Yale; unmarried; no children. All in all, other than having a Sudanese father, a boring individual.

I wasn't surprised when Mubarek approached me first with an outstretched hand. She had a firm handshake as she introduced herself with a smile as "Tina Mubarek, owner KMA and all around pain in your ass."

"Christian Grey," I replied taking her hand. "You give yourself too much credit. At most you are a scratch." She laughed, then I introduced her to Ros. She was ballsy, I'd give her that.

"It's good to finally meet the legendary team of Christian Grey and Ros Bailey," Mubarek states. "I've been admiring your operation for years before I decided to insert my toe into the M&A pool. I modeled my operation at KMA based on GEH."

"I'm flattered."

"Don't be. We intend on improving on the model," she laughed.

"Time will tell Ms. Mubarek," I replied. Reluctantly, I had to hand it to her – she had the right attitude for M&A, especially starting out. If anything, I was even cockier than she was and I was in my early twenties. I can't wait to see this woman go head-to-head in the interview later this week with Kate. They could potentially eviscerate each other on live television. This will be one time when I can truly appreciate Kate's skills. "So what brought your company to Seattle?"

"I knew if I wanted to make a name for myself in M&A that I'd need to take on a big name and let's be real, taking on a self-made billionaire, Harvard drop out is one hell of introducing yourself on the scene if you succeed." She takes a sip of her coffee, then stares into my eyes and adds, "And I like to play our a good scene if you catch my drift."

Without blinking an eye, I ask her to elaborate. She merely smiles and quietly replies, "Events like this are scenes. You strut in and put your best foot forward. You know that as well as I do. It's all in who is the master with the whip and can lead the seller their way."

"So what got you into M&A in the first place?"

She laughed. "I wanted to prove that M&A isn't solely a man's world and that a bad-ass bitch like myself can rock the boat."

I laughed. I didn't want to, but part of me respected her.

"Care to make a wager on how this goes Grey?" she asked. "If I win the bid, I get use of your private jet for this weekend and if you win, I'll back off the Kazmyrsky Industries bid."

"Normally I'd consider it, but the GEH jet is booked for a family trip this weekend."

"I'll beat you into submission yet Grey," she replied with a smirk. "Just like I'm going to make your sister-in-law look like an imbecile on national television later this week." She then joined Ibra Wek at the breakfast bar.

Taking a few minutes, I check my messages. I hate my new burner blackberry, but it's a necessary evil in today's environment. I text Taylor and have him start digging into Mubarek's involvement with the BDSM community. I couldn't but feel some of her wording was intentional and wondered if she knew about my past. Typical Taylor, he was already on it as he was close enough to hear our conversation.

A few hours later, presentations were made, lunch was eaten, and we were waiting in a large conference room for the final decision. At one end of the table were the representatives from GEH and on the other end KMA. It's been a long time since I was nervous about a business deal. We adjusted our final bid this morning once we realized GEH had been compromised just days ago. At that time we had worked up on final bid and presentation, but we had no way to know if it had been part of the compromised data. The listening devices were removed from GEH, but work was still being performed on our computer systems. Though Barney advised me that the new firewall should hold, but he would know more in a few days after more testing.

Taylor and Ryan had spent the past thirty-six hours security properties – the house at the Sound, Escala, Elliott & Kate's home, and Bellevue had been scanned and listening devices removed. All of our vehicles had also been scanned and cleared. We've more than doubled our contingent of CPOs, and added guards on both Charlie Tango and the two GEH jets.

Taylor and I both came into today's meetings with KMA expecting for either Mubarek or Wek to be familiar voices from the listening device the other night, but neither was. We were disappointed when they weren't. That would have made it too simple, I know. Nothing in my life has ever been simple. Either way, I've charged Ros with bringing KMA to their knees, no matter the cost.

Mr. Park entered the conference room to announce the winning bid. The short, South Korean man went to the center of the table and pulled a typed statement from the file in his hand as he began speaking. "Both bids were comparable in overall scope. It was a difficult decision as there were few pros and cons in the selection of either side. In the end, the selection was made due to a minor legal issue within one of the bids, thereby causing us to reluctantly eliminate it from consideration. Knowledge of the laws of any country are required if you are attempting to enter the business market in said country. Though the over-sight was minor, it was still an error and Park MicroVentures desires security for our loyal employees. Any over-sight in the law can impact this security, therefore we eliminated one of the finalists."

He had all of our attention now. I couldn't help but glance at the GEH legal team hoping it wasn't them. I didn't look forward to firing two people who'd been with GEH since the inception, but this deal was just too important.

"The new owner of Park MicroVentures is Grey Enterprise Holdings," Mr. Park announced.

I wanted to dance on the table. I was elated but I wasn't sure if it was because Mubarek herself drew up their bid as an international lawyer, or because we won the bid. It took every ounce of my precious self-control not to gloat. I knew if I glanced at Taylor or Ros my self-control would fade. We watched as Wek and Mubarek thanked Mr. Park before they left, without having said a word to us. At that point, I glanced at Ros, then at Taylor, and we laughed. After the past few days, we needed the laugh. More than that though, I knew with this acquisition, I could double the size of GEH in a few years and continue to share the wealth.

So far it was a good day – hell a great day. Tonight was our summit to strategize and view the information provided to us by Rami, from Luke. My cell phone vibrated and I looked at the text message:

_**Congratulations Mr. Grey & GEH on your acquisition of Park MicroVentures! Revenge is a dish best served cold. If food is unavailable, hijacking KMA's spellcheck will do in a pinch… Rami**_


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

The week feels like it will never end and it's only Tuesday evening. After GEH's winning the bid on Park MicroVentures we all breathed a sigh of relief. I knew Rami's intervention in the KMA bid wouldn't come to light, mainly because KMA's IT team had been neck deep in GEH's servers. All of the security measures Welch, Barney and I had put into place over the past years meant nothing as we went up against what exactly – an unnamed government secret agency? I knew from my time in the military that all governments had these agencies. Yet, I really wanted to believe that our government was above sinking to underhanded tactics. I know it was naïve of me to think that way and deep down I knew better. It's just not something you want to believe.

My thoughts wander through everything as I set up the new laptop and hooking it to a new state of the art smart board – Luke, Rami, KMA, and Africa, my new mantra as ran through the data. The linchpin is Grey or GEH. I'm around Grey all day as his head of security to know his interactions in Africa – feeding the poor, healthcare, schools, and his precious telecommunications project. It's the latter that to me is the only logical choice as the potential linchpin. His life's work to date has been finding ways to feed people in Africa by circumventing the corruption. It's a cause Luke was trying to be involved with by providing a polymer for the case. That, coupled with Rami's actions, of interfering with the Park MicroVentures bid, was a clear indicator of the odds on favorite for the linchpin – the phones.

"Taylor!"

My thoughts are interrupted by Grey's shouts as he arrives at our secure location with Welch. We had an hour to review the thumb drive contents before the others arrived in luxury bus, shuttled by Reynolds.

"Are we set up?" Grey asks.

I nod as Grey hands me the thumb drive. After plugging it into the laptop we see there are two files on the drive – a video and a picture. With a quick click the picture comes up on both the laptop screen and the monitor. All it is an almost blank organizational chart. The one cell filled in is the one at the top labeled: GREY/GEH but the normal org chart black lines are replaced by thin yellow brick roads. Nice to see Luke kept his sense of humor.

"Follow the linchpin impact," Welch mutters "and maybe the wizard will provide answers."

I can see by the look on both Welch's and Grey's faces, they were hoping that GEH wouldn't be the actual linchpin, but rather a step in the process that wouldn't be significant. Denial is a strong emotion. As of last night, I had no doubt, if we built a chart, GEH was the first domino. All indicators pointed in that direction.

"The video, Taylor," Grey ordered unhappily.

With a click the video icon on the laptop, and the smart board image was now of Luke Sawyer staring into the camera. Before we click to play the video, I examine his surroundings. It looks like a regular office or library. He's sitting at a large desk with multiple pieces of computer equipment around him. Behind him is a massive book case filled to the brim with books on language, culture, politics, and the sciences. The one thing that strikes me is the image of Luke himself. As a CPO, Luke was always impeccably dressed – never a button undone or tie knot loosened. His face was always the picture of one of three things: calmness, mirth, or anger depending on the situation. In this picture, he was in an expensive suit, but buttons were undone and the normally perfect knot in his tie was loose and hanging. No matter how many hours Luke put in as a CPO he never really appeared tired. Yet, looking at the screen, he appeared exhausted, like the weight of the world was weighing heavily on him. There was no missing how different this version of Luke was when compared to the man we knew as a CPO and the carefree image he exuded at the gala just a few days ago. Oddly enough, the video timestamp indicates this was recorded the morning of the gala.

Reluctantly, I started the video and the image of Luke immediately tapped the framed picture on the book case behind him before addressing us.

"_Well Mr. Grey, if you're watching this then my contingency protocol went into effect. Simply stated, I'm either dead or hooked up to a life support system with no expectation of recovery," Sawyer began and then laughed. "It definitely feels weird saying that. It's like something out of a bad spy novel. Don't feel bad for me. This is a life I've chosen. You don't do what I do for a living without the expectation of dying young and hopefully leaving a half-way decent looking corpse. It's the nature of the beast._

"_I went into this business with my eyes open as a fifteen year old. Yes, they recruit young, then educate the heck out of you, but let's be real – I wasn't the average teenager. Neither was my mother, her brother, or their forbearers." He pointed to the framed black and white picture behind him of a teenage man and woman. _

"_It's hard to say no when you are a multi-generational legacy. My uncle was the only one that said no in the past hundred and fifty years. He walked away from the agency my family founded in 1864 and never looked back. Can't say I blame him. I mean, power corrupts and we're talking about the ultimate power here on a global scale. Imagine being able to impact events worldwide with a single decision and watch the game play out from the sideline like an FC Barcelona tiki taka soccer game._

"_Mr. Grey – fuck it – Christian. Roll your eyes all you want – I'm dead, so you can't give me the old Grey glare for using your first name." Luke smirked. "I was assigned the task of building a dossier on GEH and more specifically – on you by the agency just over four years ago. It started as another mundane assignment, but the more I dug, the more my eyes were opened. I'd be lying if I said I didn't know all of your secrets – I do." Luke smirked again. "Have I told you I was a bit OCD when I was alive? The OCD made me thorough – ridiculously thorough." He paused with a smile. "Let's just say we have a few things in common. If you're lucky, I'll haunt you and we can compare notes."_

Welch and I glanced over at Mr. Grey. He was clearly uncomfortable with where this was going.

"_I acquired information that would make your head spin – connections no one else had made and I validated those connections. I know you can relate to being a control freak. My inner freak was running on overdrive as the pieces fell into place. Hell, one night I sat at this very desk, stared at the screen, then probably said fuck a hundred times over." He laughed. "In my line of work, you're not easily shocked. There is no such thing as coincidence. If someone tells you there is, just smack the crap out of them and move on. Coincidence doesn't exist. I can't stress that enough." _

_He smiles, then glances to the right of the screen and continues. "Taylor, I know you're probably standing to Grey's right, so take this as a fucking clue – coincidence is a clue. Don't use coincidence as a fall back point." _

I can't help but smile at Luke's image. "Can't be more direct than that."

_Luke continued returning his attention to Mr. Grey. "Coincidences are hard work to pull off. I mean, it just about blew my mind when I discovered that Jack Hyde was intentionally placed in your path. For me, it was a turning point. I mean, at the agency, I was charged with the African continent. I wasn't a just a run of the mill agent. This information was kept from me. It was a like a switch went off in my head, killing any doubt I may have had. By the way, Hyde had a little aneurysm in prison and is a vegetable. He won't be able to harm anyone ever again – coincidence? I think not. They'd left someone alive and in prison, which is where they fished him out of in the first place, ready, willing and able to come after your family. It was time for a coincidence and dammit if I don't look good dressed in orange._

"_I've seen it all in my career – war, rape as a weapon, murder, genocide, discrimination, and other senseless horrors inflicted on the innocent, but you also see the good – the families and their will to not only survive it all, but to succeed regardless. You've seen it on your trips to the Continent, just as I've seen it. I know you have. It got into your soul, as it did in mine. We're a great deal alike. No insult intended either way."_

_After a chuckle, he continued more seriously, "Africa is a continent full of natural resources. Each government corrupt in its own way. Tribal violence is rampant in some regions. In many ways, most governments there don't think globally. This trait has led many leaders over time to their downfall. Well, that and just plain greed. As you know, in many countries they punish the populace to exert control, crushing them in some of the most inhumane ways possible – starvation, ethnic cleansing, sexual violence, mutilation, and such. This ongoing turmoil doesn't allow the leaders of each country to think globally. They spend all their time trying to destroy the will of the people and line their own pockets. This leaves them ripe for manipulation by foreign governments for their own gain. I know all too well, as I've been a vital cog in that manipulative machine for nearly two decades dedicated to Africa._

"_In my field, there are two types of operatives – those that get the job done at any cost, and those that get the right job done for the right reason. These are two factions that generally don't see eye-to-eye and struggle for control of the agency; thereby dictating the actions of said agency. It's heartbreaking to watch an agency that was built on the blood of your forbearers become something that is ethically unrecognizable."_

We watch as Luke gets up from the desk and pulls a file from a cabinet to his left before returning front and center. He pulls a picture from the file and points it toward the camera. It's familiar from the gala – the crash scene photo from the wreck that killed his mother and step-father.

"_The wreck that took my mother's life, along with her husband, and injured my sister wasn't an accident at all. It was intentional, meant to shift the momentum of the agency toward the side with loose ethics. At the time, I was young and an up and comer in the agency, but apparently on their radar and it was part of their plan to sway me toward a less than righteous path. I was moving up the ranks too quickly and it made waves. My sister's survival changed the course of my life, inadvertently giving them free reign as it pulled me away with enough distance from the day-to-day agency activities, to not interfere with their plans. I spent quite a bit of time working at the pentagon over the next decade while I raised my sister. That doesn't mean I didn't keep digging on my own though. Sometimes OCD is a wonderful thing. I found that my uncle too was murdered by the agency years before when they tried and failed to sway him back to the family business but on their side. He was a nineteen year old college student in Chicago just trying to live his life."_

We watched as Luke grabbed the picture behind him and pointed to the young teen that was his uncle. He looked somewhat familiar, but we couldn't quite place him – dark wavy hair, dark eyes, tall with a muscular build. There was no missing the intelligence in his eyes, but his simmering youthful exuberance as well.

"_The message I'm trying to convey is simple: these assholes are dangerous. A human life isn't important if it accomplishes their mission. They believe in acceptable losses and casualties. If I'm dead, then there are few left of my mother's line – Abby and my soon to be born son. I've assured their safety with my contingency plan. So far I've managed to keep the agency away from them throughout this process. Abby has no idea of the family history. I've kept it that way so she couldn't get sucked in. Sue me, I'm over-protective. I'm hoping this will be enough to keep them away from her, but one thing I've learned over the last two decades is even if she's not involved, they will consider her a liability – genetics after all. My uncle was out and it didn't stop them. I'm trusting Rami to watch over them. Now that I'm gone, he's their last line of defense._

"_I know it probably seems like I'm rambling. Yes I probably am. Three days without sleep will do that to a person. Christian - I need you to go into this with your eyes wide open because I'm not around to cover your ass any more. In the years you, Taylor, and your family have known me the one thing you didn't realize is I never did anything without a reason. Did I say never? Every step, smirk, remark, glance, and action were calculated to a million decimal points. It was the only way to leave the information behind that you will require moving forward. Unfortunately, I spent the bulk of my time with Ana, Gail, and Taylor, so you will have no choice but to pick their brains. You will need to go back through all of your odd encounters with me over the years and re-evaluate them versus the person I truly am in order to find the clues. I had to leave them in this fashion in order to carefully tuck them away from the agencies prying eyes. So every time you noticed something I did out of character is where you dig for more as you pull the puzzle board together._

"_Trust no one. __Everyone has a price even if they aren't aware they do. For most it's financial, but for others it can be family, mankind in general, their government, or even feeding their own personal neurosis. Right vs. wrong; good vs. evil; black vs. white – so cut and dry, yet life rarely is so. For me, it's family first, mankind second. I'm well aware the order should be reversed, but when you've spent more than half your life living in the grey, a certain amount of murkiness sets in and you grasp what makes you feel human, which for me is family. Oddly enough, a blood link plays only a small part in my family – you don't choose your blood family – you do however, choose your true family. Me? Well, I'm the pit bull that protects my family unit. Mess with one of them and I push back ten times as hard. Outwardly my family unit appears small even insignificant, but it's not. There are members of my family that are completely unaware of their tie to me. These are people, when I was alive I protected." He chuckles again. "It still feels weird to say 'when I was alive'. I'm probably rotting away smelling awful by now."_

We watched as Luke paused yet again and sighed. The cool façade cracked slightly as he reached into his desk drawer and pulled out a photograph and pointed it toward the camera.

"_This is my son – my world, along with Hannah, Abby and Javi," he began as he struggled to keep the emotion from his voice. "He won't know me other than what people tell him as he grows up. Hannah knows some of my family history but not enough to put her in the line of fire. One day, when my boy is approaching adulthood, I'm relying on you to let him know the truth about me. Abby can't do it, as she's flying blinder than Hannah is with regard to my life. There's no one left other than Rami and he'll never talk – he's a secrets to the grave type of fellow and with me out of the way, the agency will make sure he doesn't survive much longer._

Once Luke returns the picture to the drawer, he pulls a shot glass and a small bottle of single malt scotch from his desk. After pouring himself a shot and downing it, he continues.

"_Let's cut to the chase, shall we? Enough of my emotional crap. First – Christian you were originally targeted by the agency in part because of your scores on IQ tests back in high school. There was a point in time when they wanted to recruit you but they found you to be too independent, volatile and unpredictable." Luke laughed. "That one family trait saved you, but it made you the man you are today, which again, placed you in the bulls-eye of the dartboard that is the agency. Your compassion for humanity, coupled with your innovative way of thinking has left you front and center in this potential cluster-fuck._

"_I know you well enough to know, I can't tell you how to think and I wouldn't presume to try. All I can do is give you some advice – figure out the linchpin, pull a team of your most trusted together and determine what the potential fall-out would be both ways - if you continued on your current trajectory or pulled the plug on the project. Before you make any decisions, you need to follow each fork in the road to the inevitable end before you make any decision. I know which fork I would follow, but it's not my place to lead you there. I can only provide the nudge. Trust me, it's taking all of my self-control for that nudge to not be a kick in your ass in my preferred direction._

"_Why am I not telling you what I would prefer you to do? Because I told you to trust no one and that includes me. It's pretty fucked up, right? After all, not trusting me, well that's only fair. I'm smart enough to know that my views can be jaded given what I do for a living and the reality is, I was raised in this life. You weren't, so I'm counting on you to look at it from a different perspective and make the right decision. There are so many nuanced shades of grey here – fucking ironic, I know."_

He stopped talking enough to down another shot of whiskey. "_It probably feels like I'm talking circles here and it's intentional. I've hidden the pieces so only you and your will have access to the resources to pull them together. I'm asking you to take the word of a fallen agent – me. Yes I went rogue. I don't deny it. Yes, I pulled my network in Africa from the agency. I did it with my conscience clear. I have nothing to gain from this personally. I'm not a zealot or a psychopath. At least not officially diagnosed anyway." _

_Again, he laughs. "All I am is a person attempting to fulfill the original role of the agency as it was originally chartered. I've pissed many people off over the past twenty-four months within the agency. I won't deny that, but when the good of the agency or one government supersedes the good of humanity, it's like drawing a line in the sand before me. I had to act. My actions were over three years in the planning. As I said at the beginning of this video confessional, the more I dug, the more my head spun. It became clear to me that once I officially went rogue that I'd be dead within a year, so I had to make the time I had left count. All I can hope for is that the steps I took are enough to right the ship._

"_Elliot built all of our facilities and homes except one. He doesn't have enough information to be in any danger, especially since I've kept him too busy to even think of digging. He will be handy in a pinch though as he knows every security feature and passageway of each build. Now Kate has been a thorn in my side. She's going to get her ass killed if she keeps digging. You need to find a way to make her stop. I'll be lucky not to have gotten my ass killed trying to keep her safe. She's a lot like you Grey, once she wants something, she stops at nothing to get it. You need to stop her or she'll end up dead. She's too smart for her own good. She knows it's the story of her career but she needs to be reminded she won't have a career if she's cremated. I trust you will find a way to convey the message."_

Luke sat back in his chair and took another shot of whiskey. By the hesitant look on his face, we couldn't help but feel the worst was coming.

"_I've taken every precaution possible to keep you and your family safe. My security team has infiltrated GEH, Grey Publishing, KMA, your father's law firm, the hospital where your mother works, Kavanagh Media, and so on. Most have been in place for years, while KMA is more recent. You can have Taylor run all the background checks in the world, but you'll never find my operatives, but when you need them, they will be there for you. Their orders are to keep you safe and not to interfere with any decision you make on the linchpin. _

"_As part of my contingency plan Rami has been instructed to upgrade your surveillance equipment but only if you opt to do so. Again, the choice is yours and will not be forced upon you. Within forty-eight hours of my official time of death, you will receive the polymer research signed over to GEH for you to do with as you please. First stop Grey, the patent office. I will say though, if I were alive today, between the polymer and the latest development in surveillance technology my company developed, I'd be as rich as you are. Not too shabby for a former bratty, toe-head from Baltimore. Good luck and good conscience Grey."_

We watched as Luke leaned forward toward the keyboard. Once again, he smiled and continued. _"One more thing Grey – Mubarek at KMA is fundamentally unstable. Her taste in décor is something Barney might find fascinating, though she'd eat him alive. As I said – she's unstable. She needs a doctor. The key to managing surveillance on her is: don't blink."_

Welch, Mr. Grey and I look at each other for a moment after the video ends.

"Luke Sawyer – CPO, Spy, and enigma," Welch stated flatly. "We've got a hell of a lot of ground to cover if we're going to review every time Luke acted out of character."

Mr. Grey ran his fingers through his hair. I knew what he was going to say before he said it, but I let him voice what we were all thinking – "I can't believe this agency placed Jack Hyde as an operative in their –"

"Cluster fuck Mr. Grey," Welch finished his sentence. "I'm glad Luke can pull off an orange jump suit. I wouldn't want a repeat performance by Jack Hyde."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

No sooner than Luke's video ended, did the luxury bus carrying Elliot, Ros, Kate, Barney, Andrea, my father, Ryan and Reynolds arrive. I felt like I couldn't stop running my fingers through my hair. _OCD much Grey_, I thought. I must look like a copper-haired Einstein by now – disheveled, and I don't do disheveled, just fucked look – yes, disheveled - no. The video answered some questions, but added what felt like a million more. I really needed to lock myself in a white room, just to calm down, escape all sensory input, and regain some semblance of control. _Not going to happen Grey._

Once everyone served themselves coffee, we sat around the large conference room table. I was on edge. I knew I had to calm down, but it was difficult, especially since my best CPOs were in this very room. We were being guarded by two relatively new ones outside. Back at home, Ana and the children were also being guarded by two newer CPOs. Luke's words: _trust no one_, were haunting me. It was difficult to control what was becoming my overly active imagination. _Fuck!_

Finally, after a few awkward moments of silence, I took a deep breath and started our meeting. "As you are all aware, our telecommunications and computer systems have been hacked, and Grey House security compromised. I trust you are all in receipt of your new phones and the old ones are safely tucked away in your desks either at home or in the office."

I waited for everyone to give some type of indicator that they were following that edict. _Edict – I sound like a despot_, I thought. _If the shoe fits Grey!_ Once I saw a nod or heard a yes from everyone, I continued. "We are working right now to secure our computer systems, but in the meantime, please use the laptops we are about to provide for all GEH correspondence and work. Barney has set each of them up with secured wireless hotspots and the latest in security software. At no time are these units to be connected to the Grey House servers or any other networks. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir," most people in the room state.

"Barney, please demo one of the units."

I always liked Barney. He was awkward and nervous, until you placed a computer in his hands or asked him a software question, then he went into a nerd-version of Dom-mode – granted he was a tall, thin, awkward Dom who reminded me of actor DJ Qualls, but still – he was a spectacle to behold. Everyone listened intently as he ran through the security software featuring both fingerprint and retina scan identification.

"Any questions so far?" I asked when Barney finished handing out the computers after his briefing.

It didn't surprise me when Ros raised her hand. She was always shrewd. "What the hell is going on Christian? I take it this is about a heck of a lot more than KMA."

My father's encouraging nod caught the corner of my eye. It was time for me to shit or get off the pot in terms of trusting people enough to form my team. Other than Ana, the people in this room were my trusted team.

Ros had been with me from day one when I left Harvard and started GEH.

Barney followed a few months later when I hired him straight out of MIT and his parents basement.

Andrea has been my PA for well over eight years, yet she was more than that. I could give her the name of a company to research and within twenty four hours she'd be back with a dossier that included not just everything about the business, but about the upper echelon of the business and now GEH's purchase would impact that industry moving forward. She was, for all intents and purposes, the third most important person at GEH behind Ros and me.

Welch, Taylor, Ryan & Reynolds – the core of my security team.

My father – the legal side of the puzzle and a shrewd operator in his own right.

Elliot – I trust my brother with my life, but I need him here not only to control Kate, but his interactions with Luke over the past year or two could potentially be key to determining what actions on Luke's part in the past were true character aberrations.

And Kate – She's headstrong, smart, tenacious, and oh so annoying. I've said it before, I look at her and I see a female version of myself with a well-endowed chest. If you had asked me four years ago if I trusted Kate Kavanagh, the answer would have been a resounding hell no, but now I do. She drives me crazy sometimes, but I trust and respect her. Who'd have thought?

"Apparently GEH has drawn some unwelcome attention from one of our own government intelligence agencies due to a project we are currently working on in house," I informed them.

"This is about the phones for Africa you are trying to develop, isn't it?" Andrea asked curiously.

Taylor, Welch, my father and I glanced at each other briefly. "What do you mean Andrea?" I asked trying to keep my voice disinterested.

"It's the only logical choice," she replied. By the look on her face, you could see the wheels turning in her head. This was just another of her beloved logic puzzles to solve. "All other GEH acquisitions aren't true game changers in their industries other than streamlining how things are done. The African phones, if finalized and distributed, are true game changers with impact that goes way beyond merely reporting corruption in real time. They will destabilize already corrupt governments, escalating violent clamp downs on the people in some countries, and impacting governmental affairs globally. It could potentially impact the sale and distribution of Africa's resources world-wide."

"How do you know all this?" Ros asked curiously. We were all looking at Andrea through a new point of view.

"I'm a news and logic puzzle junkie," she confessed before blushing. "I also attended the last Star Trek convention in London just to attend a panel dedicated to my favorite episode – Cause & Effect."

Who would have thought, the serious, blonde, iron maiden that was Andrea was a Trekkie. Everyone appeared shocked.

"Who did you dress up as?" Barney couldn't help but ask.

Andrea blushed profusely. "No comment."

"Orion Slave Girl," Barney smirked as she blushed a bit more. "I knew it."

Andrea couldn't turn any redder than she already was, or so we thought. Somehow she did. "Enough Barney," she snapped at him. Even though she snapped at him, the smirk remained on his face. I made a mental note to look up Orion Slave Girl – Star Trek on the internet. Andrea continued, "The episode was basically about the impact a decision made has moving forward. In the episode we saw the impact of different decisions. That type of thing has always fascinated me. I remember being a little girl when my grandfather died in a car accident. He was supposed to turn right, but turned left instead and into the path of a semi. He died on impact. I remember my grandmother at the viewing mumbling over and over again, if he'd only turned right. I was close to my grandfather, so I spent the rest of my childhood wondering what my life would have been like if he'd turned right and was still here. I know it probably sounds silly, but it impacted how I viewed the world around me."

"It's not silly at all," Carrick informed her. "We've all done it at one point or another, especially while grieving. You were young, so it became part of you. It's not a bad thing."

"So the government doesn't want you to distribute the phones?" Andrea asked.

I sighed. "It depends on who you ask within the government. We believe KMA could potentially be a government-fronted operation attempting to bring GEH down so the project is never completed. I can't prove that – yet, but we're getting closer. Have any of you heard of linchpin theory?"

"Godwin's linchpin theory in business to make yourself indispensable at work, or the synonym for the domino effect where one action triggers a series of others in order to create a desired outcome," Ros asked.

"The latter," I replied.

"So the phones are the first volley," Ros commented deep in thought. "Now all we have to do is figure out the government's desired outcome and see how the phones production or lack thereof impacts that."

"I have to hand it to you son, you only hire the best. That much is clear," my father informs me with a smirk.

"I'm not going to lie to you. This could get dangerous, as my sister-in-law Kate can attest to," I informed them with a quick glance at Kate, who was deathly pale and peeling the blush-colored nail polish off her at an alarming rate. "If any of you want out of GEH, I will gladly provide a substantial severance package. Your safety is my number one priority and appropriate security will be provided. I'm assembling my team to deal with this, but it's one hundred percent voluntary."

Andrea and Ros spoke at the same time, "I'm in." Barney followed suit, as did my father and the entire security team. Only Elliot and Kate were quiet.

We all watched as Kate couldn't pull her green eyes from Elliot's blue ones as she whispered, "I'm in."

"_Fuck!_ Kate! You were almost killed on Sunday because you've gotten too close to this," Elliot shouted at her. I didn't miss the quick angry glare he shot my way before returning his attention to his wife. "You went into my private business files without my consent. You know that I've taken on half a dozen government contracts in the past two years. In some way, I know I'm dead center in this thing somehow, but you need to step back from this and give it a rest before you end up dead. Luke's in no condition to protect you again."

"I can't. You know that. This is a huge story. This is my career," she informed him. "What do you need me to do Christian?"

"I need you to stop asking around. I need you to dig, but electronically and securely," I replied. "I want you to take a leave of absence from work so people to believe you stepped back from your investigation. You'll have your story in the end if all goes right, but I need you secure and quietly working us to figure out the good, the bad, and the potential ugly outcomes of releasing or not releasing the phones. I want you, Andrea, and Ros off their radar."

"Because we're female?" Kate snapped at me.

I couldn't help but laugh. "No. If you haven't noticed, females are 80% of the upper management at GEH. I want you off their radar because you each have a different skillset – you dig and know world politics from your reporting; Andrea digs, is intelligent, & organized; and Ros digs, is intelligent, and has a knack for thinking outside the box. What better core team could I have?"

Elliot appeared relieved by my request. Kate however appeared conflicted. I continued addressing Kate. "Whatever it is you discovered on Sunday and now don't remember, was important. You somehow ruffled some feathers and it left you in position number one on their hit list. We need to knock you down a few rungs on their list or completely off it. From what we understand, Luke was struggling to keep you safe because of the aggressiveness with which you pursued your investigation."

"How do you know that? He's in the ICU with a ventilator keeping him alive," she asked anxiously.

It was clear Kate was nervous. Some of her normal cockiness was gone, her color pale, and her voice didn't have her normal level of self-confidence. "I think you'll all find this interesting," I countered before hitting play and allowing them to watch Luke's video message.

Reactions were mixed as the video played on. For Andrea it was a puzzle. Ros had that look she gets when she's processing everything – _the 'don't bother me, I'm busy'_ –face. Barney just looked plain excited at the prospect of new toys. My father's face was just grim. Elliot defaulted to the male Grey indication of stress by repeatedly running his fingers through his hair. Ryan and Reynolds both swore. Kate however, ran out of the room in tears exclaiming it was her fault.

We all waited for my brother to go after his wife, but a minute passed and he sat there conflicted. Another few seconds and I muttered, "I'll go" and followed my sister-in-law out the door. Naturally, where I go, Taylor follows.

Since the explosion, Kate had been unnaturally quiet and withdrawn. She claimed she wasn't feeling well, but Ana and I both knew better. We'd heard her and Elliot arguing over what amounts to her doing her job. I knew my brother well enough to hear the fear in his voice for her well-being. Luke's video confirmed his fears.

I found Kate curled up on the rear seat of the luxury bus. Her knees were pulled up against her chest and her arms wrapped around them as she rocked herself in place. Her sobs were the only noise in the quiet place. When she finally realized I was there, she gazed up at me. Her eyes were red, puffy, and her state of mind evident. It was the first time I had ever seen her look vulnerable, but it was more than that. She looked broken.

"This is my fault," she muttered as she attempted to calm herself.

"How so?" was all I asked as I sat next to her.

"I shouldn't have looked in Elliot's contract drawer."

I laughed. "Elliot knew when he married you exactly who you were – the good, the bad, and the mood swings. First off, he should have locked the files away better and he knows it. Second, Luke exposed you to enough information, as did I by the way with regard to KMA, which you do what you always do – find the common threads. You are a reporter. This is exactly who you are. Just like I'm a control freak. Certain traits are engrained in people and these are ours. It makes us good at what we do. Elliot knows this and it's what he loves about you, but I can relate to his anger right now because it's a manifestation of his fear for your safety – just like mine at Ana during the Hyde incident."

"So now what?" she asked as I handed her my handkerchief.

"We tighten up security, set you up an office at the house so you can enjoy the eighty-inch LCD smart board, and work with the team doing research. As much as it pains me to say this, I need you on my team."

She laughed and hugged me. "Pains me too Grey. Eighty inches, huh?"

I nod.

"I'm getting weak in the knees just thinking about it. I'm such a tech whore."

I laughed. "Well, Barney ordered four of them at fifty-two grand a piece. One for you, along with Ros and Andrea. I ordered one for my office as well."

"Any update on Luke?"

I sighed. "According to my mother, they are starting to slowly reduce the medication for the medically induced coma as the swelling on his brain has finally began to go down. If he survives, he may never be the same again in terms of cognitive function. We won't know anything until he actually wakes up – well if he actually wakes up."

"Why did Rami give you the video if Luke still might recover?"

"I've been asking myself the same thing. I'm still uncertain if I can trust him, but at this point in time I don't have much of a choice. The man is an enigma."

A few hours later, Kate, Elliot, the security team, and I arrive back at the house on the Sound. The house is dark and quiet. After we check on the kids and find them asleep, I check on Ana and find her sleeping soundly in our bed with a manuscript on her chest. I cover her with a blanket and take the manuscript from her. It's the same manuscript she was reading on the balcony the other night. I've never seen her read the same manuscript cover-to-cover twice. I know she's supposed to meet with the author, Brigid Graham on Friday. I email Welch from my phone for the update on the background check on Miss Graham.

My mind is racing after viewing Luke's video earlier. If this book was as good as Ana said it was, then perhaps I'll escape into it until I can't keep my eyes opened. I head to the kitchen and grab a glass of wine, before heading to my office with the manuscript in hand. After getting comfortable on the large couch, I begin reading.

_**And so the Domino Falls**_

_**Dedication**_

_**To my brother who said it best: "You are what you were raised to be and what you know. Sometimes you have to say "FUCK THAT" to really live." If he only knew how right he was. I know it now and regret not following in his footsteps rather than live in the known.**_

_**Character Preface**_

_**Tinker – Tailor – Soldier – Spy, a great movie but if this were reality, it would have been Asshole – Egomaniac – Narcissist – Spy. Why you ask? Well, spying is my game. It takes a certain type – my type. I'm all those things and then some. It's not a game for those with a weak constitution, low self-esteem, or high moral fiber. You have to be smart, sure, and unable to feel remorse. Lack of empathy is key. Well, that and be a pathological liar. I've seen those in the espionage profession who can't flip the empathy switch to off and they don't last. They crack, quit, or put a gun to their head. It's not pretty, but it's a dog-eat-dog world out there and empathy is a luxury. In the industry we call it drowning in quicksand.**_

_**If anyone had told me a few years ago that I, Parker Reed, would ever feel empathy while on the job, I would have bullet in your head and danced naked over your corpse. Have I mentioned that I'm a jerk too? I am, or I was. Depends on who you ask. I've been on the job for decades, killed countless scumbags, and moved on without blinking an eye. It's what we do in the espionage game. You live many work lives, all the while, not allowing them to drip into your real world. It's a slippery slope and you're drawn toward the quicksand and take that first step toward drowning. Me? After my worlds collided, I dipped my toe into the quicksand, only to find myself neck deep. For you it's a story, but for me it's my worst nightmares coming true.**_

_**This is my descent into madness. Please accompany me on the journey through my murky world.**_

My reading is interrupted by the vibration of my cell phone. "Grey," I answer.

"Welch here sir. That background check on Brigid Graham came up empty so far. There are three people in the states with the name, all of whom are on the east coast – none west of Roanoke. I'm running full checks on the three to see if they have any ties to Oregon or Seattle, but if you could forward me any further information on the author it might go quicker."

"I'll see if I can find out more from Ana in the morning and will let you know." I hang up and close the manuscript. Enough spy shit for today. I'm going to wake up my wife and lose myself in her.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

There was a time where I'd sell my soul to see my thickheaded brother and my equally thickheaded wife to get along. Now isn't one of those time, so naturally, they are getting along wonderfully. I'm appreciative that Christian is pushing for Kate to take a leave of absence from work and covertly research. I'm also thankful for the security surrounding her and Ava.

I understand now why Christian was a fucking asshole before he met Ana – working too hard and stress. I haven't felt like myself in a year. I used to be able to laugh at any stress, solve it, and keep going. Lately, that's been impossible to do. Since the explosion I feel paralyzed – completely overwhelmed at the magnitude of it all.

Right now, I get to sleep in the extra bedroom at Christian's and Ana's house because my wife is pissed off at me that I don't want in on their investigation. So she's in one guest bedroom and I'm in another. Due to my construction projects I can't get involved. Yes, Kate found some plans but not the main ones. The plans for my main project are safely locked away in a safety deposit box and only available to both Luke and I. Neither can access the box without the other. I have known some of what's going on for over a year, but I've kept it from my wife and family. I have to. It wasn't an ordinary NDA I signed. It was much more – a matter of national security.

I also know there is more going on than Luke's telling me. The video shocked me to a certain extent, but I'm not stupid either. I've read enough John LeCarre novels to know this spy crap is always layered. I know Luke has been juggling for the past year and a half trying to keep all the different things going on in the air. I also know, he was critically injured saving my wife and for that I'll be forever grateful. He promised to watch out for my family, and he's kept his word; thereby earning my loyalty.

After a quick shower, I get dressed for the day. It's just before six am and I'm hoping to head out before anyone wakes up, but naturally I stop and kiss my sleeping girls on the forehead before I leave. Kate may be mad at me, and while I understand that, I refuse to leave without kissing my wife goodbye in some manner. After all, Kate and Ava are my world. Without them, I'm nothing.

The more I hear about this linchpin theory, the more I know I can't lie to my brother's face much longer without him realizing that I'm holding back information. It's killing me. Frankly, I'm surprised Christian hasn't realized that I'm working the project in the no fly zone two hundred miles east of Seattle. I'm shuttled in by chopper almost every day, while my crew lives there. This was a fifteen-billion dollar contract and I wasn't going to risk losing it by breaching my NDA.

Even though I had crews working on all of Luke's other projects, my focus was on the big one. Thankfully, I have good leadership working for me who are managing their crews well, so I don't have to worry as much.

This morning I'm meeting Rami for breakfast down town. With Luke still on the ventilator in the ICU, he's become my primary contact. I know given Luke's condition other changes are going to have to be made. Luke was my main liaison for all of the projects, but now I feel like we're in chaos due to lack of leadership. When I pull up to the coffee house, I'm surprised to find Jose Rodriguez sitting next to Rami. I knew Jose was Luke's business partner in one of his businesses, but now I know there is something more going on.

"Rami, Jose, it's good to see you both. Any update on Luke's condition?" I ask after shaking their hands and joining them at their secluded table.

"Just slight improvement so far. This changeover will be easy," Rami began, "as you both have known each other for a number of years. Until Luke recovers, Jose will be your primary contact on Project Anomaly's technology."

I couldn't help but look at Jose curiously. I mean, yeah, the guy went to college with Kate and Ana, plus I know he is Luke's business partner on Luke's main non-government business, but lead in Luke's stead – _What the fuck!_ Yes, over the past year and a half Jose surprised me. I was used to shy, quiet, and reserved Jose, but his association with Luke brought him out of his shell and made him more confident. I know for a fact he was still too shy to ask a girl out without at least two drinks in him and even then he sucked at it.

They could see I wanted to say something but didn't feel we had any level of privacy in our public environment. "This place is secure," Rami informed me as he laughed. "Speak freely my friends before Abby joins us shortly and we will be forced to discuss the other projects. As you know, Luke wanted me to do everything to ensure her security, so she must not know about Project Anomaly, PA for short, and his involvement in other non-government sanctioned activities."

I was surprised when it was Jose that spoke up. "You need to realize something Elliot. All of the technology being incorporated in PA was developed at Saez Industrial Technology and Research, which Luke and I co-own. We pulled the brightest from engineering programs all over the country and set our goals, targets, and began working. We knew what we were working toward from day one, and now so do you. Surely you know this project cannot fail or be compromised in any way."

"I understand, but I also need to know what the hell else is going on with my wife, brother, and GEH. Kate could have been killed last weekend," I demanded.

Rami put his arm on Jose's to stop him from speaking. "You, Mr. Grey, need to learn to muzzle your wife. I understand her intelligence and drive is highly appealing, but in this instance, you need to somehow make her understand that she needs to cease all activity. Each gear moves in this complex machine, but when Luke took action over a year ago, things became more complicated. At that time he didn't have a choice but to take action. He even had to force his sister and Javi to move cross country in order to protect her. She moved without hesitation, because she knew in her career she could make a difference here. And she will."

"How is she coping with Luke being in the ICU?" Jose asked with concern.

"I've known Abby for roughly twenty years. Ten years ago she would have broken down emotionally. She's more resilient now. She's achieving her goals and she knows breaking down will not help Luke; neither will sitting vigil twenty-four hours per day in the ICU, so she goes first thing in the morning and during visiting hours. She knows if she exhausts herself it puts her health at risk. She also is using work to keep herself busy, which is a good thing," Rami explains. "But if Luke dies, I can't say with any certainty that she will recover. Javi is like her twin brother, but Luke is her life. Given her medical history, she tends to work both regular and volunteer positions, builds businesses where the profits go to charities, and has a few hobbies. Her personal life is, in her mind, insignificant. In the past ten years, the only person she's let get close to her is Javi and that was because Luke befriended him after Javi prevented her from being attacked. The worst part is knowing if Luke wakes up, Abby, Hannah and little Luke will be first on the agencies list as they are his main vulnerabilities. Acquire any one of them, and they have control of Luke. It's why they are protected by a small army."

"Nice to know my mental health issues are being discussed behind my back," Abby laughs as she joins them. "Hopefully I'll make your lives interesting. Good morning Elliot, Rami, Jose."

It was funny to watch Jose's reaction to the good doctor and her choice of morning wardrobe. She wore a tiny khaki green skort, at least that's what Kate would call it, with a tightly-fitted, lighter khaki-green paisley bandeau top, also what Kate would call it, and it was barely covered by a revealing cream-colored cardigan. The Dorado X clogs made her appear taller but even with them she barely hit five foot two. As usual, the good doctor's hair was in a loose French braid with brown suede stands throughout the braid. Kate would say Abby was Boho-chik. She was sexy as hell and I haven't seen Jose this confounded by a girl since Ana years ago. I wish we were in a bar as I would immediately order him two shots of Patron.

"Good morning," we all muttered at the same time.

"So Rami, when can I get rid of the goon squad?" she mock-whined as she smiled at Jose before taking a cookie off his plate. When the waitress came over, Abby ordered a large latte with three extra shots of espresso and a cheese Danish.

"You're going to be bouncing off the walls baby girl," Rami told her affectionately. "And you're keeping the security until Luke is awake and states otherwise. You know the routine. You're security is increased when he's unavailable or he travels."

"Typical," she sighed before smiling at Rami. "He moved his hand today when I called him an asshole for not waking up. I might have to invent a new type of medicine – insulting coma patients until they want to wake up and slap the crap out of you."

"I told you and your parents twenty years ago that he was stubborn," Rami laughed. "Remember what I told your mother when his appendix ruptured and he was in the ICU?"

Abby laughed. "It was the first time I had ever heard a swear word. Mom was upset because Luke was so sick and you said to her: _Brig, stop worrying. Luke is a mother-fucking asshole and he's too stubborn to die now._ It made her feel better, until Luke woke up and I called him a mother-fucking asshole, then she smacked you in the head. She was not happy her five year old said that. Luke however laughed his ass off."

"How are you holding up with everything?" I asked. She looked tired and stressed, but oddly serene.

She sighed. "Honestly, I'm a bit overwhelmed. New job, new city, Luke, my belonging are finally arriving today to the condo, and my collectibles are being delivered to the new house along with the furniture and housewares I ordered. Thankfully Javi offered to be there to take delivery of everything. Maybe once that's done and Luke is better, I'll feel at home. Other than Javi, Rami, and Luke, all of my friends are in Baltimore. I don't know where to go here to blow off steam."

I couldn't help but smile at her. I knew her collectibles were cars and motorcycles. She may dress boho-chic but the good doctor was an adrenaline junkie and her preferred rush was speed. Some women collect shoes, jewelry, or clothes. Dr. Aguero collected high end cars and motorcycles. When she called me two months ago to expand her garage from a 12-car standard garage to a fully custom 24-car garage with display spinners it shocked me, as did her request to add a two bay fully loaded car repair facility with one side containing a lift along with a standard four car garage attached to the house. Luke laughed when I had mentioned it to him and informed me he and his sister enjoyed car restoration as a hobby. The doctor was full of surprises.

"So your car collection is arriving today after being hauled cross country?" I asked.

She nodded with a smirk. "No more crappy rental car for me."

"What do you normally drive?" Jose asked.

"If the weather is nice, a Ducati 1199 Panigale R; otherwise I rotate between a barolo black Range Rover Autobiography and a lime gold metallic Porsche Cayman GTS," she replied blushing. "Sue me, I'm a car and motorcycle whore. Some women get turned on by men, others women – me? My Aston Martin One-77 turns me on when I take it on the track or just get behind the wheel."

"That's almost a two million dollar car," I exclaim unable to hide the shock from my voice. Even Christian wouldn't blow two million on a car and he loved cars. I make a mental note to drag Christian to see her car collection once it's delivered. Now I understand why the garage is more a showroom with thick glass walls and sliding glass doors to pull the cars in and out.

What does she do? Points to herself and says "Car Whore. Though taking my Ecosse Titanium Series FE TIXX on the highway and violating the posted speed limit is even better."

"You spent over three hundred thousand dollars on a motorcycle?" Rami practically yelled at her. "Luke is going to have a stroke when he finds out."

"My money, my vice, so don't tell him about the McLaren V12 Spyder I ordered either," she exclaimed with a grin. "Besides, I'm never getting married or having kids, so on this one vice, I'll spend it since I have it, any leftovers go to young Sawyer Jr. After all, Luke made me custom build a ten-thousand square foot house next to his fortress – again, my money and he spent it on my place with his obsessive need for security, so I'm entitled to my toys."

Christian would love her property. Between the ten bedroom, twelve bath house, the landscaping, the custom garage, the basement with full-height ceilings which featured a modern gym, a massive indoor pool, a hot tub, a dance studio, a state of the art recording studio, and a game room, the fully functioning winery and the vineyard he'd be in heaven. All he'd have to add is a landing pad for Charlie Tango and a playground for the kids.

I also know the good doctor exceeded the ten million dollar budget in all of her upgrades and that didn't even include all new facilities for the winery. We were looking at a property in the end worth well over thirty million. She promised me she'd tell Luke herself once the work was complete. She kept doing wire transfers to Grey Construction with each addition. I wish all my clients were like her. She didn't blink at the price, plus she hinted to me that when the new building at Parkway was going up she had quite a few other projects within the building headed my way.

I remember the day she walked off the plane from Baltimore. Kate and I were with Luke and when we picked her up from the airport. We met Hannah for lunch near SIP, then we did the final walk through on the completed renovations and I handed her the keys. She was dressed in a little paisley trapeze mini-dress and jumped up and down like a little kid on Christmas morning. You couldn't help but grin at her.

"How are Hannah and little Luke doing?" Jose asked.

"Hannah's hormones are all over the place so I've been staying at Luke's house with them. She's tired and a bit depressed, which is expected given the circumstances. We're meeting at the hospital in an hour. I figure if Luke is starting to wake up, he's going to want to see his fiancé and the little toe-head carbon copy of himself," Abby laughs as she pulls up pictures on her cell phone and shows them a picture of the baby. "He's so adorable. Right before he starts to cry he gets that same look Luke gets when someone pisses him off. All I want to do is taunt him, but once I pick him up, it's difficult to let him go. After being in the hospital all day, to come home to a happy little person who smells like baby shampoo and talc is just lovely."

"And you say you don't want children one day?" Jose asked.

It was the question that popped into my mind when she finished speaking. I was glad Jose asked it because for a split second she looked devastated, then a moment later it was replaced by distant, almost aloof look.

"It's complicated – rather, I'm complicated," she replied tersely before taking a bite of her Danish. We sat there quietly until she finished chewing, and she continued. "So Elliot, how are the projects coming? Are we on target?"

_Abby 1 / Jose 0_, I couldn't help but think. "The club is on target to be completed for the scheduled opening in seventy-five days. The carpenter I hired arrives tomorrow and will remain in Seattle until the custom bar is completed."

"It's the same carpenter who built all the furniture, correct? I want consistency," she replied.

"Yup, it's Ray Steele. He's my sister-in-law's father. All the other furniture has been built and is now stored, waiting until the interior is completed. Parkway is officially no more and the debris should be all cleared in the next week, then construction can begin on its replacement – _Parkway Reborn_. Even I'm excited about this build. It's a state of the art commercial building."

"Perfect," she replies. Abby almost seems nervous as she continues. "I would like your assistance in acquiring a meeting with your brother. I know he is extremely busy, but I have a business proposition for him. In the deal where Luke and I acquired Parkway, we acquired two other buildings – one I'd like to sell to Christian due to its proximity to Grey House, the other I would like to rehab and use for charitable purposes. Unfortunately, in Seattle the name Aguero means nothing, but the Grey name carries meaning in charitable circles; therefore, I would appreciate his assistance."

"Where is the building in proximity to GEH?" I couldn't help but ask. I knew Parkway had been Christian's second choice of location for the GEH expansion. His first choice wasn't on the market and the owner had no plans to sell it, which frustrated him to no end as the building was literally right next to Grey House. "It's the building next to Grey House, isn't it?"

All she could do is smirk at me.

"You little devious pixie," I laughed at her.

"Actually, when Luke's happy with me he calls me Pix or Pixie. He rarely calls me Abby. When he's unhappy with me, I'm Bitchxie. And when he's completely and utterly pissed off he calls me Abigail Marie. Anyway, with regard to the properties - what can I say, I like screwing with people so when I had the opportunity to pick up the two properties I really wanted, and one I didn't really care about, I took them. Grace had told me he wanted that building, but I had the in with the owner, since he owned all three buildings. I took it, knowing that I would need help establishing the Saguero Trust Education division."

"It's Thursday," I comment. "Ana usually has lunch with Christian at eleven thirty in his office and they discuss SIP business. If you want to win him over with regard to charitable work, you'll want Ana there as she'll jump on board in a heartbeat if it's about education. If you want, we can interrupt them today. I have the plans all drawn up for the building next to his from six months ago when he thought he could secure it. We could double team them at Grey House at eleven forty-five?"

"Game on Mr. Grey, Game on."


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"Grey House Security Office, Taylor speaking," I answer the phone on the first ring using speakerphone. Since we increased security on all Grey properties, I can't help but feel like we're juggling coverage while we wait for the proverbial ax to fall.

"Rami here. I understand Dr. Aguero is supposed to be heading your way along with Elliot Gray. They are due to arrive in the next few minutes," Rami informs me. This is news. I had no idea Elliot was heading this way, much less Dr. Aguero. "I need you to contact me and hold her there until her security detail can arrive. She gave them the slip at the hospital."

I smirked. "It must be a thing for women in their early twenties to do," I reply unable to take the grin off my face. Thankfully he can't see it. "Mrs. Grey was exceptionally gifted at slipping from Luke's grasp. Looking back on it now that we know who Luke really is made me feel better about our security set up. It took her getting taken by someone before Ana got serious about her security."

"We've been tracking the good doctor's phone and it's traveling toward your location at roughly eighty-five miles per hour."

"That's quick considering we are downtown. Once she gets off the highway she'll have to slow down a bit. What's she driving so I can have my team watch for her?"

"A new Ecosse Titanium bike," Rami replied unhappily. I can already tell that like Luke, Rami was overprotective of Dr. Aguero.

"I might have to wait for her out front myself just to see the bike."

"This is serious given the current situation. She ran off without security and that could get her killed, especially since Luke has started to regain consciousness," Rami snapped bitterly. "Going off on a bike at high speeds, without security, in an area she is still not all that familiar with is just plain stupid."

"Believe me, I completely understand." Glancing at the security monitors, I notice Elliot Grey is now in the lobby, apparently waiting for Dr. Aguero as he stares outside. "Elliot's here. I'll go see if he's heard from Dr. Aguero and get back to you."

"Perfect. Her security team is on their way to Grey House. I'm not too far behind them. Please do not allow her to depart without me having an opportunity to see her. You have my permission to secure the keys to her bike. She will be leaving in the rear seat of a Range Rover. I'll arrange to collect the bike later today."

Without another word, he hung up. I know I probably sounded just as cranky when the last Jack Hyde incident occurred. That was until Ana sat Luke, Mr. Grey, and I down and explained how she didn't take security all that seriously because she'd been kept in the dark so she wasn't aware of any credible threat. This is probably what Dr. Aguero believes as well, so she hopped on her bike and blew off her security team for some fun.

"Ryan, take over. I'll be back." With that I head to the lobby to meet up with Elliot. I have to admit, I'm more excited about seeing the bike than I am about anything else. I've read about the Ecosse Titanium models, but never thought I'd see one. They were top of the line price-wise, and a technological marvel. Mr. Grey enjoyed his helicopter while I enjoyed motorcycles, much to Gail's chagrin.

Elliot is standing before the glass wall in the lobby, patiently waiting for Dr. Aguero. He looks excited as he holds a large document cylinder. "Good afternoon Elliot," I greet him. "I wasn't aware Mr. Grey was expecting you. There's nothing on his calendar."

The shit-eating grin on his face says it all – it's a surprise visit and Elliot and Dr. Aguero are going to storm GEH tower for shits and giggles. Just what I need to lose control of Mr. Grey's schedule, which means he loses control of his schedule and everyone around him suffers. Worst of all, Elliot decided to interrupt Ana's regular weekly _business meeting_ about Grey Publishing with her husband. Like they really discuss business during those ninety minutes, which makes the interruption even worse.

"Your partner in crime ditched her security at the hospital to take a spin on her motorcycle," I inform him. "Rami isn't happy. I'm going to wait for her outside."

I step outside and Elliot joins me. We chat for a while about the Mariners and the Seahawks before we hear the motorcycle approach. It sound like pure throaty heaven as it gets closer. When it pulled up in front of Grey House my jaw dropped. It was stunning craftsmanship at its best – all metal with a black seat with a touch of orange. Most men would be looking at Dr. Aguero in her full-on, tight-fitting black leather body armor, but sadly, not me – the motorcycle is amazing. When it comes to females, my eyes belong to Gail. Well, we have an agreement, if time travel is invented, I get to go back to the 1960's and have a fling with Raquel Welch, while Gail travel's back to have a fling with 1954's version of Marlon Brando. What can I say, we both like old movies.

Elliot watches as Dr. Aguero leans forward and removes her black helmet, causing her long, dark hair to cascade down her shoulders. Her cheeks are flushed and the massive grin on her face reveal her overwhelming joy at riding.

"Get me a video of her pulling up on that thing as she walks toward us and takes off the helmet. That was sexy as all hell," Elliot requests.

"I'm sure Kate would love that," I inform him with a smirk.

"Even Kate would get turned on by that," he countered.

"I'll make sure you have it before you leave. I look forward to your sleeping in the security office after you share the video with your wife," I couldn't help but laugh at him. It was nice to have an informal relationship with Elliot since his brother was so formal.

Gail and I had been in constant contact with Abby since Luke has been in the hospital. She's kept herself busy through all the stress, but right now she was glowing. She's a good kid. I can see why Luke was ridiculously protective over her – almost Christian Grey-like. Youthful exuberance flowed out of her every pore.

As she approaches us, she tosses me the key to the Ecosse followed by the helmet. I can't help but smile at her – she knows she's not getting to ride it back.

"Good afternoon Jason," she greets me. "I trust you will take good care of my latest toy. I trust you to drive it back. I don't want it tied down on the back of a flatbed like a bad fetish movie for motorcycles."

I can't help but match her grin. "My pleasure. Rami is coming to personally pick you up in about a half hour."

"What no warning about my security?" she asks with a grin.

"Why deprive Rami of that joy?"

"So Elliot, ready?" she asks as she pulls the black leather messenger bag that's hanging behind her over her head. "I've got all the paperwork, contracts, and such. Do you have the plans?"

He nods and asks about Luke.

She instantly pulls out her camera and shows us a picture of Luke, semi-conscious in the ICU with his son sleeping on his chest. Next to him is Hannah making sure that little Luke doesn't slide off his father. "He's coming around slowly but surely. If all goes well, he'll be in a regular private room in the next forty-eight hours. First thing he mumbled about was Kate."

"Can you forward that picture to Kate?" Elliot asks.

Abby agrees.

I get them both security badges and escort them to the twentieth floor. If it were Abby alone, she wouldn't have gotten this far. Elliot has open door access to his brother, whether the younger Mr. Grey wants it or not. The office door being ajar surprised me. Andrea was at lunch and Olivia scheduled off, but I believe I can hear Ana and Mr. Grey actually discussing Grey Publishing business and the new author Ana is championing. Unfortunately I know we are unable to run a true background check on said author, which has us concerned. Welch is still digging.

Naturally Elliot just barges into the office followed by Dr. Aguero. "Hey Bro! Sis! I'm surprised you two still have your clothes on."

The boss rolls him with a grimace. When they notice Dr. Aguero, they both greet her. "So Dr. Aguero, what can I do for you? Haven't you gotten tired of spending time with my unevolved sibling?"

"The name is Abby, remember?" she smirks.

"For the sake of these negotiations, we'll stick with Dr. Aguero and Mr. Elliot Grey. This is business after all," Elliot corrects her.

"True, excuse my past informality Mr. and Mrs. Grey," she replies laughing. "I am here with a business proposition. The indignant and irrepressible Mr. Elliot Grey was kind enough to help me storm Grey House without an appointment or proper attire. Saguero Trust is interested in not only entering into an educational partnership with the charitable division of GEH, but also divest itself of a property that rumor has it you might have an interest."

Once Mr. Grey summoned Ros to his office, the conversation continued after greetings and introductions. Mr. Grey and Ros were quietly known as GEH as _the two gingers_ when the staff was happy with them; when they weren't, they were known as _the two flaming assholes_. I hope that never got back to either of them. They were the perfect team.

"So what did I miss," Ros asked as we all watched Dr. Aguero unzip her body armor and remove it, revealing underneath a pair of skin-tight skinny jeans and a lace tank top that barely covered the small purple tube top she wore underneath. "At least I didn't miss this show."

"Ditto," Elliot laughed. "Thanks for the peep show Abby. I think I speak for everyone when I say, thank you for being so uninhibited and hot."

"Elliot, has anyone ever told you that saying you were an asshole would be an insult to assholes everywhere?" she replied with a grin.

"Why fight perfection?" he countered.

"So you have a conference room with a big screen?" Abby asked pulling a thumb drive from her messenger bag.

We followed Mr. Grey to the conference room next door. Ana grabbed her manuscript as her time was running out and she had to be back at Grey Publishing in just under an hour. Once Abby had the computer powered up and the big screen on, she began showing them the building she'd purchased and her vision for the renovation.

"Saguero Trust acquired this residential property near the University of Washington. Our goal is to convert it to apartments and award full scholarships to those recipients awarded who meet the financial criteria. Our goal is to have twenty units in the building, along with a live-in facility manager. Unfortunately, the name Aguero to most people means Sergio Aguero, the Manchester City soccer player – no relation and lucky me, he's currently single. Abby Aguero means nothing locally and Saguero Trust is just becoming known locally, while our presence in Baltimore is well-known. My hope is that this branch of Saguero would partner with the Grey charitable organization for this to be the first of many in the states of Washington and Oregon. So you see Mr. and Mrs. Grey, I want to use your names to help push permits through, along with helping to publicize this effort."

Ana smiled instantly after glancing at Christian. "I'm in either way. I know what it's like to struggle financially to make it through college. I would love to see your charities business plan."

"I'd like to review the business plan before we make any type of investment even if it's our name," Christian countered.

I couldn't help but laugh. I've worked for Grey long enough to know what Ana wanted, Ana got. It took all of two seconds for Abby to pull out three copies of the business plan and hand one each to Grey, Ana, and Ros.

Now Abby was grinning like a cat that got the canary. "In exchange for use of the big Grey machine, I would like to offer to sell GEH a property, at ten percent below fair market value. I acquired this property at the same time as Parkway."

"And if it's a property I don't want?" Christian asked.

Abby laughed. "Then I'll convert it to a homeless shelter and methadone clinic – all thirty floors of it. I can be a vindictive bitch at the wrong time of the month."

Ros laughed with her. "So you're the bitch that not only took Parkway from us, but also bought the building next door when it wasn't even on the market."

"It's amazing what big brown eyes, a charitable plan, and a push up bra will do during negotiations," Abby laughed. "Luke was not amused at the push up bra, but the security team enjoyed it."

"You own the building next door?" Christian said with disbelief as Elliot handed him the original architectural plans that were developed six months ago before they couldn't secure the building. "Just give me a number and we'll negotiate from there."

"Once you review the charitable collaboration's business plan and buy in, then we'll negotiate the price of the building next door."

"And if I say no to the charitable arrangement?"

"I've already told you – homeless shelter." She smirked at him. "I know, you don't negotiate with terrorists, but it can be so much fun."

Mr. Grey laughed at her audacity. "You're nothing like Sawyer. You remind me of myself when I was just starting out, all self-assured and cocky."

"How often does someone like me get to knock heads with someone like you? I mean, really. You're as controlling as Luke is. I doubt you're worse, but stranger things have happened. I just like bucking authority figures and screwing with them whenever I can, but all for a good cause," she replied.

"I've looked into Saguero Trust after the fundraiser," Ana informed her with admiration. "You've done some incredible work with inner city schools, food banks, international relief aid, and education back east. I would be honored to be involved with Saguero."

"And we'd be honored to have you as a trustee Mrs. Grey," Abby replied. "If you'd like to join us, I wouldn't say no. Here in Seattle we have a few events coming up – new low cost medical clinics in the Crossroads district in Bellevue and the South Park area; a concert at the Seahawks stadium to raise money and collect canned goods for local food banks; and we purchased a large local farm and an orchard just outside of Seattle that will help provide food banks with healthy alternatives and fresh produce. Saguero expanded its focus to the Greater Seattle area and it's surrounds eighteen months ago. We have a few restaurants, café's, and other entertainment-related businesses set to open over the next year or so where all profits after expenses are paid will help fund different charitable organizations in the communities where they are located. Javi and Mia are co-directors of these efforts and their flagship project goes live in six weeks."

"Mia works for Saguero?" Christian asked in shock.

Abby smiled, "She's been working for Saguero for the past year. Their project, _La_ _Puma Encantada_, is a restaurant and club featuring the cuisine, beverages, and music of South America. I took a month off from work last year and Mia accompanied me on an eating tour of Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, and Venezuela. I think we each gained ten pounds that month. We ate, danced, and cooked for a month straight."

"You two were a security nightmare," Rami chimed in as he entered the open conference room door. "It was the last time I accompany you and Mia on one of your expeditions. Never again."

"We weren't that bad," Abby countered blushing slightly.

"Photographic evidence indicates otherwise," Rami countered as he flipped through pictures on his phone. Once he found the one he wanted, he turned it to face us. It was a picture of Abby and Mia, barely dressed, dancing on top of a table with a bunch of male dancers and they each were chugging South American Agua Ardiente straight from the bottle.

"Looks like they were doing the appropriate research," Ros commented with a smirk.

Rami didn't look happy with Ros's comment. "That research included throwing up on their security detail, being carried out of just about every club they visited, and both of them scoring a blood alcohol level over 0.19 in Rio."

At least Abby had the sense to blush. "It was vacation aft-

Rami shut the good doctor up with a mere look. Mr. Grey looked like he wanted to toss her over his knee and spank her as the petulant child he thought she was. At least they partied hard with security. I couldn't help but wonder why their detail didn't do anything to stop them.

"So Ana," Abby began after looking at the manuscript in Mrs. Grey's hands. "Is that manuscript going to be a best seller?"

Ana sighed in frustration. "Only if we can actually get the contract signed with the author and actually publish it. It's one of the best spy novel I've ever read. Unfortunately, before Grey Publishing can meet with the author, it's a formality for us to run a basic background check on them, but this author is coming up blank."

"I love spy novels. Can I take a peek?" Abby asked.

We watched as Abby stood and reached across the large conference room table to take the manuscript from Ana's hands. Everything felt like slow motion as Abby ran her finger over the authors name on the manuscript cover, while the color slowly drained from her face. She muttered something that vaguely sounded like mom before she began hyperventilating before passing out. If I hadn't caught her, she would have cracked her head open on the conference room table.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

The second we saw Dr. Aguero lose consciousness, Taylor caught her before she hit the ground. I ordered him to lay her on the couch in my office. We all followed. "What the heck just happened?" I couldn't help but ask Rami.

It took a moment for him to reply. He was carefully selecting his words before he answered. "The stress of the past ten days has finally caught up with her. She hasn't been sleeping or eating well; couple that with the long days she has been putting in at the hospital and at Saguero Trust and she collapsed."

"Liar," we heard her call him as her eyes slowly opened. After a few deep breaths, she sat up and rubbed her temples. Finally she glared at Rami intently "You get one shot at this Rami and only one – Has Luke been lying to me over the past fifteen years and is he part of the family business? He promised me he wasn't but I want the truth."

"This is a conversation that requires your brother and in his condition, I would advise against it," Rami concedes.

"You're fired. Take your security detail and get out of my life," she snapped. "And before you tell me I can't do it, let me remind you that I hold fifty-five percent controlling interest in Saguero Trust and Saguero LLC, so what I say goes. If you want to continue working for my brother's other interests privately, I can't stop you, but if I find you or any of you team on my property or following me after today, I will contact the authorities. Do I make myself clear?"

"Baby girl, you are over-reacting," Rami tries to soothe her. "This team has been watching out for you since you were five. Regardless of what Luke's chosen profession may or may not be, might I remind you that you are worth over thirty-five billion dollars and require close personal protection."

"I don't deserve to be lied to, even if it is by omission. Do you think I'm stupid? I've suspected on and off over the years, but now I know," she yells at him as she gets to her feet. We watch as she heads over toward Ana and takes the manuscript from her hand, before returning her attention to Rami. "How do you explain this?" she shrieks as she slams the manuscript down on the table before him. "How?"

He gazes down at the manuscript briefly before returning his attention to her. "So that author has the same name as your mother's maiden name."

"Stupid doesn't look good on you Rami," she counters. "You were around at the time my mother died. You know she was working on a book with this title. Don't fucking lie to me!"

"This is a conversation that is better left for family and behind closed doors."

"It's amazing what you can discover behind closed doors in this _family_," Abby informs him, emphasizing the word family as she sits on the coffee table directly before him. "You know, since Luke's accident if you can call it that looking at it in retrospect, I have been staying with Hannah so she's not alone. When I can't sleep at night I've been sitting in Luke's home office just to feel closer to him."

"His office is locked with the highest level of security," Rami counters. "You can't possibly have been in there."

She informs him that she knows how her brother's mind works. "It took me all of five minutes to decipher his password, but it wasn't until today that I began snooping because I felt like something wasn't right. And do you know what I found?"

"I can imagine."

"I now understand why my brother was so protective over Christian Grey and his family," she replies glancing over at me with a bittersweet smile and then she returned her attention to Rami. "What I don't understand is why he was never told the truth? Luke's known for two years – two fucking years and he never told him who he really was – who his biological father was. Why?"

"For the same reasons he didn't tell you about his involvement with the family business."

At the mere mention of my biological father, who I had assumed was one of my Mother's johns, my eyes went from Ana, to Taylor, and back to my wife. "He knows who my father is?"

"Was," Abby comments sadly. "He died a long time ago, before you or I were born. From what I understand, you are a great deal like him. Did you ever wonder where you're ability with numbers came from? From what Luke's file implied, it wasn't from your mother. Kyle wanted to be a mathematician. You're mathematical abilities clearly came from him."

"Kyle? His name was Kyle?" I sat down on the couch feeling a bit overwhelmed. For years I had Welch attempt to find information on my biological father, but there was nothing to go on.

"Ask me any questions you'd like and I will answer to the best of my ability. I don't keep secrets from family," Abby replied softly.

"Family?" I croaked.

She smiled. "Do you think you got that just fucked hair by chance? Have you ever seen Luke's hair when he grows it out a little longer than it is now? Same hair, just blonde. You've got your father's and my mother's hair color – dark ginger with a touch of cinnamon. Genetics are a marvelous thing. I found a copy of the genetics' testing Luke had done comparing his DNA and yours, but if you would like to run your own, which I'd assume you would, I'll make myself available at the lab of your choice, at your convenience. You will control every aspect of the testing. I want no details before hand."

I nod. Of course I'll want a DNA test. "What was his full name?"

"Kyle Lucas Graham. He died at nineteen in car accident. He was my mother's younger brother."

"How did he know my birth mother?"

"She was a freshman at the University of Chicago right after she finished high school in Michigan. He was studying engineering and mathematics at Northwestern. They met at a party and had a relationship that lasted until he died. After he passed, she dropped out, fell apart, and disappeared. My family didn't know about her pregnancy. You were born about six months after he died," Abby recounted softly.

"So you and Luke are my cousins?" I ask.

She nods in agreement. "Unfortunately, I don't know much more than that. Uncle Kyle died before I was born, but Luke knew him quite well as a child. He should be able to offer you more insight with regard to him. I can only offer you more insight about my mother, Brigid Graham and my asshole brother. From what I overheard when Elliot and I arrived, you wanted more information on this author; even though in all likelihood the author of that manuscript is Luke."

"Tell me about your mother," I ask still in shock.

"You might not realize it but you, Luke, and mom are … well were a great deal alike – protective, control freaks," she giggled and Ana joined her. "Like the two of you, she was a leader – bright, hardworking, and had high expectations for those who worked with her. She was also a strict mother who believed in education and that children should have structure. The only person I've ever met who focused more on education was Luke."

I see Taylor checking his cell phone and a curious look crosses his face. "Why is it when we ran a background check on Luke before he came to work for GEH did we get a fake name for his mother?" he asked.

Much to our surprise, it was Rami who answered. "You know the answer to that question – the family business."

"Would you like to see what the real background check would look like?" Abby asked pulling her cell phone from her messenger bag. By the look on Rami's face, he didn't approve. "You'll get over it Rami," she informed him before all of our blackberry's vibrated that we've received an email.

We sat in silence as we read the background check:

_Subject Name__: Brigid Graham_

_AKA__: Brigid Sawyer, Brigid Aguero_

_DOB: April 1, 1957_

_DOD: June 11, 1999 MVA_

_Citizenship__: US / Brazil_

_Education__: Master's degree in Political Science – George Washington University_

_Marriages__:_

_Evan Sawyer – June 1, 1972 thru January 12, 1983 _

_DOB: 9/2/1956_

_DOD: 1/12/1983 (Classified)_

_Citizenship: U.S. / Republic of Ireland_

_Occupation: Investment Banker_

_Luciano Aguero-Santos – August 1, 1988 thru June 11, 1999_

_Owner – PetroAguero, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil_

_Net Worth: $25 billion US_

_DOB: 10/1/1958, Rio de Janeiro Brazil_

_DOD: 6/22/1999 MVA_

_Citizenship: Brazil / U.S._

_Children__:_

_Sawyer, Lucas Henry – _

_DOB: 9/3/1975 _

_Marital Status__: Classified_

_Relationship Status__: Classified_

_Children__: None_

_Employment__ – Classified_

_Co-Director / Co-Founder__: Saguero Trust LLC with Abigail Aguero_

_Citizenship__: U.S. / Brazil_

_Net worth__: $8 billion +_

_Languages spoken__: English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Catalan, German, Arabic, Japanese, Mandarin, Russian, Swahili, Kanuri, Songhay, Persian, Korean, Swedish, Norwegian, Turkish, Somali, Hebrew, Aramaic_

_Education__: _

_PhD Micromacular Science & Engineering – Case Western Reserve University_

_Master's degree in African Studies – University of Pennsylvania_

_PhD Mathematics – University of Pennsylvania_

_MSE Computer Graphics & Game Technology – University of Pennsylvania_

_Currently Enrolled__: Seattle University Graduate Program Software Engineering_

_Aguero, Abigail Marie – _

_DOB: 9/25/1989_

_Marital Status__: Single_

_Relationship Status__: uninvolved _

_Children__: None_

_Employment__ – Pediatric Oncologist Private Practice – Seattle WA / Director of Pediatric Oncology, University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, WA_

_Owner__: PetroAguero / Brazil_

_Citizenship__: U.S./Brazil_

_Net worth__: $35 billion +_

_Languages spoken__: English, Spanish, Portuguese, French_

_Education__: _

_Bachelor's degrees in Pre-Med & Biochemistry – Georgetown University_

_Doctor of Medicine – John's Hopkins_

_Medical Residency__: Pediatrics / John's Hopkins_

_Fellowship Program__: Pediatric Oncology / Johns Hopkins_

_Volunteer Work__: Doctors without Borders; Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Pediatrician at ClinicaLibre, Seattle WA; Habitat for Humanity_

_Co-Director / Co-Founder__: Saguero Trust LLC with Lucas Sawyer_

_Siblings__:_

_Graham, Kyle L. – _

_Student – Northwestern University – 14 credits short of Masters in Engineering Science and Applied Mathematics at time of death_

_DOB: 7/18/1965_

_DOD: 1/15/1983 MVA_

_Pertinent Statistics / Graham, Brigid__:_

_Net worth at time of death: $15 billion_

_Division of assets__:_

_Sawyer, Lucas: $7.5 billion trust, additional trust from father's estate: $900M_

_Aguero, Abigail: $7.5 billion trust, additional trust from father's estate: $25 billion U.S. held in Brazil_

_Employment: Classified_

_Credit History: Classified_

"You weren't kidding about Luke valuing education," Ana commented. "It's a wonder he had time for anything else. And how did he learn all those languages?"

"From what I understand, our mother realized he had a gift for them when he was a small child, so she hired a private tutor for him every year so he could learn a new language. It came easy for him. For me learning French was a bitch."

"You mentioned he was married at the fundraiser," Ana asked. "Why doesn't that show up here?"

"Because the former Mrs. Sawyer was part of the intelligence community," Rami replied. "When he returned from Europe to care for Abby, they split up as she wasn't ready to settle down and become a mother. She was focused on her career and right now is a thorn in your side Mr. Grey."

"Tina Mubarek?" I asked.

"The one and only," Rami replied. "He'd been sent into Iran under a French passport to break her out of an Iranian prison. He got her out and they were on the run for a few weeks through Iran and Saddam Hussein's Iraq, before crossing into the safety of Kuwait. They were an exceptional team, working together for almost a year before they married. She is the daughter of the then senator in charge of intelligence for the United States; or should I say illegitimate daughter. She made her choice not to follow him back to the states when Brigid and Luciano passed. At her father's behest, she filed the divorce papers and moved on. From what I saw, she was never quite the same after that. I recall her father telling her to keep a stiff upper lip as there isn't any room for emotional attachments in the industry."

"Just think bro, your family just expanded," Elliot laughed nervously. "And based on the unbelievable sexual tension between your little cousin here and Jose Rodriguez is any indication, he just might end up as your cousin-in-law one day."

"Oh fuck me!" I muttered at the same time Abby told him _to stick it up his ass_. Yup, I really like Abby, she's feisty and funny.

"So Grey," Rami laughs, "you're not fond of Jose? He really is a great guy. He's got a good head on his shoulders."

"If he hadn't gotten drunk and tried to stick his tongue down Ana's throat back in college, I might have felt differently."

Rami's laugh echoed through the room, before he turned his attention to Ana. "So how many drinks did it take for him to finally get up the nerve to try to kiss you? That boy is shy after all."

Ana laughed and blushed at the memory. God I love her blush. "Five or six. The same number it took me to show off my esophageal pyrotechnic skills all over the place right afterward."

"Those were good times," Elliot laughed as he glanced at Ana. "When I saw you afterward you looked like something the cat wouldn't drag in." He turned his mirth toward Abby. "So baby cuz by adoption, when are you going to give in and make the first move with Jose? I mean that outfit this morning was clearly meant for him. You were smoking hot and left little to the imagination. The guy practically drooled when he saw you, so don't give me that same bullshit line that it's complicated that you spewed this morning. Unlike my little bro here, once I took the time to get to know Jose, I really liked him. He's hilarious, especially after a few beers. Or is it that you have a secret dude or dudette that you're involved with already?"

Abby blushed profusely. Elliot nailed it on the head. My baby cuz, as Elliot called her, was already spoken for.

"I knew that was you in the video. I knew it when I saw your hot little ass wiggling away from the café this morning. You're the masked dancer in the last few Juan Miguel Sorreno music videos. The height is right, the ass and boobs are right, the skin coloring is right – it's you. I'll bet Luke had a stroke when he found out."

Abby blushed even more.

"Fuck! He doesn't know. Oh man, can I tell him? Please? Let me have this one. Man, the chemistry between you two jumps off the screen. It's like almost like watching porn."

Ros was looking at Abby and a moment later she smirked, "You're definitely the chick from the video. We lesbians tend to look very carefully at the hot pieces of ass in rapper videos. Speaking from plenty of viewing experience, he's one lucky man. You can't fake that chemistry. Your brother is going to have an aneurism when he finds out."

Clearly Elliot and Ros were fascinated with Abby now. Elliot continued rambling. "That explains the dance studio in the new house, the one that's in the Parkway plans, and why you won't give Jose the time of day."

_Fuck! _I thought to myself. Christian Grey protective mode activated. Target acquired – Juan Miguel Sorreno. Launch background check. Just what Abby needs, a third over-protective asshole in her life behind Luke and Rami.

"With a full security squad, how were you able to keep this relationship from us?" Rami asked unhappily.

"No comment," Abby laughed, "or I can't pull it off when I need to do so."

"So when you were on vacation in Brazil two months ago and your security detail couldn't find you, were you with him?" Rami asked unhappily.

"I ditched security, jumped on a private jet, and met him in Miami to film his next video."

"Was it at least tastefully done?" I snapped at her, causing everyone in the room to smirk. They know me too well.

"Well one version of the video was," she whispered with embarrassment.

"So you let you inner whore out on film," Elliot laughed. "You're a video vixen in doctors clothing."

"Why do you think I never show my face, or all my goods for that matter?" she snapped. "We have good chemistry, we dance well together. It's fun. Until today, no one was the wiser. Please don't tell Luke."

"So let's talk price on the place next door," Ros laughs at her. Even I can't help but laugh at Abby's embarrassment.


End file.
